http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/ en webmaster@sandstonepress.com Copyright 2014 2014-11-27T18:08:16+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2014/p._d._james/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2014/p._d._james/ We are deeply sorry to learn of the death of PD James, one of Britain’s (and the world’s) most significant crime authors. She was also an early success for women crime writers, an effective example and model as the many brilliant female crime writers of today will be attesting in the near future. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-30232569 Our friends at Faber and Faber have posted this brief but eloquent announcement on the death of one of their finest authors. http://www.faber.co.uk/blog/p-d-james-1920-2014/ 2014-11-27T18:08:16+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2014/saltire_society_publisher_of_the_year_2014/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2014/saltire_society_publisher_of_the_year_2014/ We are delighted to have received the Saltire Society Publisher of the Year Award AT the Society’s annual Awards Event on Tuesday11th November, this year held at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh. A mighty ‘Thank You’ is sent to our employees, close associates in selling, design, typesetting, print, retail and all other sharers of this difficult location where art meets business, and of course to our authors. Most of all though, we thank the readers because it is them we have our conversation with, even though we never meet. That thoughtful, feeling, witty, concerned and caring individual who takes a Sandstone Press book and £8.99 (or whatever) to the till is at the centre of our world and always will be. 2014-11-13T10:31:57+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2014/sandstone_press_shortlisted_for_the_saltire_society_publisher_of_the_year_a/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2014/sandstone_press_shortlisted_for_the_saltire_society_publisher_of_the_year_a/ We are delighted to announce that Sandstone Press has been included in a short list of six publishers for the Saltire Society Publisher of the Year Award. The full list, together with the book award lists, can be read here: Saltire Society lists 2014-10-05T15:41:14+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/sandstone_press_at_the_wigtown_book_festival/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/sandstone_press_at_the_wigtown_book_festival/ Now one of the premier book festivals in Britain, the Wigtown Book Festival has begun. We are delighted to salute the great and successful efforts of the organisers and to wish all the authors and interviewers well. Visitors are assured of a great literary experience. Sandstone Press has three authors present. Sir Kenneth Calman will be discussing his medical/literary chapbook, A Doctor’s Line. Eric MacLeod will talk about the new, extended, second edition of his Highland classic, The Kerracher Man. Peter Ross will be reading from and taking questions about his brilliantly received portrait of contemporary Scotland, Daunderlust. Every year the Wigtown Book Festival gets stronger and is now an event simply not to be missed by book lovers in or visiting Scotland. 2014-09-27T12:32:45+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/alastair_reid/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/alastair_reid/ Sandstone Press is saddened to note the death of Alastair Reid, one of Scotland’s great writers and thinkers, at the eage of eighty eight. The link below is to Alan Taylor’s fine obituary in The Herald. http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/obituaries/alastair-reid.25413073 2014-09-24T12:29:07+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/new_titles_april_-_august_2015/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/new_titles_april_-_august_2015/ Sandstone’s Managing Director Robert Davidson and Editorial Director Moira Forsyth will be in London today (Tuesday 16th September 2014) to present our titles for mid-2015 to the Faber Factory Plus sales team. Please do visit the book pages in our Forthcoming section where you can read much more about these great books and download the advanced information sheets. The summary can be downloaded here. New_titles_April_-_August_2015.pdf 2014-09-16T13:07:12+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/the_man_booker_prize_2014_short_list/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2014/the_man_booker_prize_2014_short_list/ The Man Booker shortlist has been announced, We send all the authors and publishers every good wish and note with particular pleasure the presence of Ali Smith. Long resident in the south of England, Ali was born and raised in Inverness which, of course, is part of Highland Scotland. http://www.themanbookerprize.com/news/man-booker-prize-fiction-2014-shortlist-revealed 2014-09-09T10:32:23+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2014/alison_lang_wins_the_donald_meek_award/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2014/alison_lang_wins_the_donald_meek_award/ The Donald Meek Award 2014 for the Book of the Year was presented to Norma MacLeod for her new novel, An Dosan at a reception at Edinburgh International Book Festival yesterday (Thursday 14 August). Financial support from Bòrd na Gàidhlig, enabled the Gaelic Books Council to establish two new prizes for Gaelic literature. Alison Lang won the Highly Commendable prize for An Aisling, a novel about a group of university undergraduates and Christine Stone won the First Book prize for her collection of short stories, As a’ Bhùth ’s an Tac an Teine. Norma said, “I never expected this at all but I am so pleased that the judges assessed An Dosan worthy of the Donald Meek Award. An Dosan is a tale within a tale and tells the story of how An Dosan (his nickname) deals with dark issues in his life. Acair will soon be publishing the book under their Aiteal imprint.” Dr. Alasdair Allan, Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland’s Languages was in attendance to present the two new literary prizes and Donald Meek personally presented the top award to Norma. The Donald Meek Award was established by the Gaelic Books Council in 2010 to encourage and support new and established Gaelic writers. Seventeen entries were received for this annual competition, representing a range of genres including, poetry, non-fiction, adult fiction, short stories and teen fiction. 2014-08-20T09:56:06+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2014/press_release_mmu_novella_award_winner_announcement/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2014/press_release_mmu_novella_award_winner_announcement/ 34 YEAR-old English teacher James Edgecombe has been announced as the winner of the inaugural MMU Novella Award. James’ novella The Art of Kozu was described by judge Jenn Ashworth as “a stunningly well-controlled and startlingly ambitious piece of writing that makes remarkable use of voice and deployment of detail.” James wins £1,000 and publication with Sandstone Press, who have twice had titles long-listed for the Man Booker Prize.  The Art Of Kozu will be published in September.  As part of the prize, Diana Beaumont of Rupert Heath Literary Agency will give serious consideration to offering James representation. The MMU Novella Award has been established by the Department of Contemporary Arts at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Cheshire Campus, partnered by Sandstone Press and Time to Read, the forum of 22 library authorities in the North West. Novella “renaissance” “With the conclusion of the first MMU Novella Award, we have got a new and distinctive literary award off the ground,” said Robert Graham, Creative Writing Programme Leader at MMU Cheshire. “We are championing a form that is enjoying a renaissance at the moment, thanks in part to the rise of the e-book.  The difference in heft between, say, Bleak House and Heart of Darkness isn’t nearly as apparent on an e-book reader.”  Robert Davidson, Managing Director of Sandstone Press said, “The Art of Kozu is a fine work of fiction that will stand the test of time - and I’m delighted to say that the e-book will be available immediately. With this title, and the strength of the short list and entries generally, I feel that MMU’s championing of the novella form through this Award has been triumphantly vindicated. The short, profound work has returned to the fore!” The winner was announced at the MMU Novella Festival, which took place at the University’s Crewe Campus on Saturday, July 12. The strong line-up of writers appearing at the festival featured Alison Moore, Booker Shortlisted in 2012 for her first novel The Lighthouse;Livi Michael, author of The Whispering Road and Malkin’s Child; and Michael Stewart, author of King Crow, which won The Guardian’s 2011 Not The Booker prize.  The festival also offered an insider’s view of the book trade from Kevin Duffy, publishing director of Bluemoose Books. 2014-08-01T13:16:20+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/nine_sandstone_press_ebooks_available_on_amazon_kindles_summer_sale/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/nine_sandstone_press_ebooks_available_on_amazon_kindles_summer_sale/ We are delighted to tell you that the following titles have been made available on Amazon Kindle’s Summer Sale and will be available throughout that period at much reduced prices. B00IHH3ALO Sandstone Press The Hunting Dogs B00E3S6BGC Sandstone Press The Marrying of Chani Kaufman B00766EYTO Sandstone Press The Sea Detective B00J1JVJT2 Sandstone Press Eat, Drink and be Married B00J1JVK8C Sandstone Press Waiting for Lindsay B00IHH3B9A Sandstone Press John McPake and the Sea Beggars B00J1JVJ06 Sandstone Press David’s Sisters B00H6V0FE2 Sandstone Press How To Dispose Of Dead Elephants B00H6V0DNA Sandstone Press King of Cuba 2014-07-18T11:45:50+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/steve_chilton_wins_the_bill_rollinson_prize/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/steve_chilton_wins_the_bill_rollinson_prize/ The Lakeland Book of the Year Awards for 2014 took place at an awards luncheon, held within a marquee at the Inn on the Lake, on Tuesday July 15th. The awards ceremony is now in its 30th year and had 60 books entered into the awards. There are five category prizes, one of which is the Bill Rollinson Prize for Landscape and Tradition. Founder of the Awards, Hunter Davies, said: ‘It really has been a vintage year for Cumbrian books. The range of subjects covered has amazed me. I really must applaud the efforts of all who entered, they should all be congratulated for their sterling contribution to Cumbria’s rich literary landscape.’ The judging panel consisted of author and columnist Hunter Davies, himself broadcaster and writer Eric Robson and BBC News broadcaster Fiona Armstrong. Overall winner for the Lakeland Book of the Year Award was Undressed for Dinner by Simon Temple-Bennett, published by Hayloft Publishing. As The Bookseller reported: ‘It’s a Hill, Get Over It by Steve Chilton (Sandstone Press), was awarded the Bill Rollinson Prize for Landscape and Tradition. The book offers a detailed history of the sport of fell running, including in-depth conversations with some of the sport’s greats.’ Lakeland Book of the Year organizer, Chris Tomlinson, said: ‘We’ve had superb support for these awards from people and businesses across Cumbria, this year more than ever, but also throughout the 30 years of the competition’s existence. Tens of thousands of pounds have been raised for Cumbrian charities in the process. The real star is Hunter Davies himself, who, few people realise, personally funds these Awards and ensures they continue. No other region in the UK is so fortunate. This is what Cumbria is about - working together to enrich our community.’ Ian Stephens, Cumbria Tourism’s managing director, said: ‘The Lakeland Book of the Year Awards are a constant source of inspiration for all those that love this magnificent County. The vast library of books about its people, places, flora and fauna, our rich cultural heritage and full range of factual and fictional writing never ceases to amaze me. As we can see from the quality of the entries this year, Cumbria truly is an inspirational place.’ In a short acceptance speech Steve Chilton said that it was ‘fantastic to get such recognition for the book from, and among, his peers’. Sandstone Press Managing Director Robert Davidson says: ‘At Sandstone Press we are very proud of our author Steve Chilton and his definitive history of fellrunning, It’s a Hill, Get Over It. We send congratulations to him especially, but also to the other category and overall winners, and thanks to the organisers of this great, long-lived event, and to its founder Hunter Davis.’ For photographs of the event please visit our Facebook. Steve’s account of the evening can be read here. 2014-07-17T06:36:11+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/its_a_hill_get_over_it_wins_the_bill_rollinson_prize_for_landscape_and_trad/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/its_a_hill_get_over_it_wins_the_bill_rollinson_prize_for_landscape_and_trad/ We are delighted to announce that Steve Chilton has won the Bill Rollinson Prize for Landscape and Tradition at the Lakelands Awards. We will bring you more news when we have it. 2014-07-16T12:41:37+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/inverness_book_festival_2014_in_association_with_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2014/inverness_book_festival_2014_in_association_with_sandstone_press/ The web site for this year’s Inverness Book Festival 2014 is online and can be accessed here: http://2014.invernessbookfestival.co.uk/ We have a particularly exciting guest list this year as you will see. 2014-07-07T17:02:11+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2014/its_a_hill_get_over_it_shortlisted_of_the_hunter_davis_lakeland_book_of_the/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2014/its_a_hill_get_over_it_shortlisted_of_the_hunter_davis_lakeland_book_of_the/ We are delighted to announce that Steve Chilton’s history of fellrunning, It’s a Hill, Get Over It, has been shortlisted for the Hunter David Lakeland Book of the Year. The announcement was made in The Westmoreland Gazette in an article by Ellis Butcher which can be read here: http://goo.gl/z6vX1v It’s a Hill, Get Over It is a remarkable book by a remarkable author and we are very happy indeed to see this recognition of both, and also of the sport of fellrunning with its unique ethos. 2014-06-23T09:41:23+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2014/press_release_mmu_novella_competition/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2014/press_release_mmu_novella_competition/ Festival to Celebrate New Literary Prize                                                     Manchester Metropolitan University’s Novella Award Festival Manchester Metropolitan University’s new Novella Award will conclude with a festival that celebrates reading and writing fiction and offers an insider’s view of the book trade.  The festival features readings, book club-style discussions with authors and panel discussions.  “I can hardly believe we’ve been able to put together such a distinguished group of authors and publishers for the festival,” said Robert Graham, Director of the award.  “It’s going to be a terrific day for readers and writers.”  The strong line-up of novelists features: Alison Moore, Booker Shortlisted in 2012 for her first novel The Lighthouse and winner of the 2013 McKitterick Prize; Livi Michael, author of adult and children’s novels, including The Whispering Road and Malkin’s Child, and winner of the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize and the Nestlé Children’s Book Prize; and Michael Stewart, whose first novel King Crow won The Guardian’s 2011 Not The Booker prize.  The day will also offer an insider’s view of the book trade from representatives of two of our most cutting edge independent publishers.  Nicholas Royle, fiction editor at Salt Publishing, will be in discussion with Kevin Duffy, publishing director of Bluemoose Books.  Jane Mathieson, coordinator of Time To Read, a partnership between twenty-two library authorities in the North West, said, “All the authors involved have written really enjoyable fiction and love to talk about it to readers. We are lucky that there are so many good writers here in the North West and this is a fantastic opportunity to meet and talk to some of the best.” The MMU Novella Award, established by the Department of Contemporary Arts in Manchester Metropolitan University’s Cheshire Faculty, partnered by Sandstone Press and Time to Read, rewards the winning entrant with a £1,000 cash prize. Sandstone Press, who have twice had titles long-listed for the Man Booker Prize, will publish the winning novella, which must be between 20,000 and 40,000 words long. The judging panel has been led by novelist Jenn Ashworth, author of The Friday Gospels.  The MMU Novella Award Festival will take place on MMU’s Cheshire Campus in Crewe on Saturday 12 July, and will conclude with the announcement of the winner of the 2014 MMU Novella Award. Early bird booking for the day (before June 15): £10.  From June 15: £12.  For more information and to book, please go to http://www.mmunovellaawards.com/festival/ Further details: Kat Dibbits at MMU 0161 247 5278 2014-06-03T12:12:10+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2014/media_and_promotions/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2014/media_and_promotions/ In a remarkable double, two of Sandstone Press’s North American authors will be appearing on the BBC on Thursday 29th May within half an hour of each other. Liel Leibovitz, author of newly published A Broken Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen’s Secret Chord, will be appear on BBC Radio 4 Front Row at 19.15. Linda Spalding, author of Governor General Prize winning novel, The Purchase, will be interviewed by Nick Higham on Meet the Author at 19.45 on the BBC News Channel. Both programmes will be available on iPlayer. 2014-05-28T07:32:25+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2014/linda_spalding_to_appear_on_bbc_news_channels_meet_the_author/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2014/linda_spalding_to_appear_on_bbc_news_channels_meet_the_author/ We are very pleased to learn that Linda Spalding will be discussing her novel, The Purchase, winner of the Governor General’s Prize, on BBC News Channel’s ‘Meet the Author’ on Thursday 29th May at 7.45 pm. Sandstone Press published this title in November 2013. Linda Spalding will also be appearing a the Hay on Wye and Charleston Book Festivals. Other media who would like to interview Linda Spalding on her visit to Britain should contact:- Ruth Killick Publicity Abbey Lodge Tintern Monmouthshire NP16 6SF (t) 01291 680319 2014-05-21T06:48:25+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/a_broken_hallelujah_to_be_bbc_radio_4_book_of_the_week_w_c_june_2nd/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/a_broken_hallelujah_to_be_bbc_radio_4_book_of_the_week_w_c_june_2nd/ OUT MAY 15 | Royal HBK ISBN: 9781908737861 | £14.99 •  Featuring as Radio 4’s Book of the Week, TX June 2, 2014 •  “A sparkling and psychologically insightful perpective on a unique artist” June Sawyers, The Booklist •  “a riveting, cinematic account . . . Leibovitz gas produced a lively, erudite and affecting exegesis of Cohen’s work” The Washington Post •  Forthcoming reviews in Q, Mojo, Uncut, Classic Rock and Shindig 2014-04-28T10:45:06+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/review_-_higher_ground/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/review_-_higher_ground/ Over the years we’ve read two of Martin Moran’s earlier books about Scotland, “The Munros in Winter” which emerged in a new edition a couple of years ago, and “Scotland’s Winter Mountains”, which we came across in 1998 and which did much to help feed our own long-standing fascination with Scotland’s mountains. So when the opportunity arose to review “Higher Ground: A Mountain Guide’s Life” by Martin Moran, we leapt at the chance. It would be fair to say that we approached the book with high expectations, and equally fair to say that it more than lived up to them. “Higher Ground” is an autobiography of sorts, but a very particular kind of autobiography. Yes, there are parts of the book in which we learn of the author’s upbringing and formative years, and of his marriage and family life. But these are here primarily to help establish the framework within which most of the book is set. The subtitle of the book is “A Mountain Guide’s Life”, and when you turn the page you find it delivers exactly what it says on the cover. The book is divided into six section, from “Formative Years” through “Home Ground: Scotland”, “Alpine Adventures”, “Norwegian Lights”, “Indian Pioneer: The Himalaya” and “Reflections”. The bulk of the content, contained within the four geographical sections, comprises a series of recollections of expeditions and adventures, clearly based on detailed diary entries made at the time. These bring the mountains to life in a marvellously vivid way. Some of the author’s writing is also extremely amusing. We read, for example, about the Norwegian industrial town of Ovre Ardal: “Fort William on a wet day is an Arcadia by compare.” What comes through most compellingly, however, is Martin Moran’s simple love for the mountains in which he spends so much of his life. And as we read his account of a search for a lost valley in the Himalaya first discovered by Eric Shipton in the 1930s, something else that had been at the back of our mind began to come to the fore. Parts of “Higher Ground” have the grip and intensity of some of the very best mountain writing of W.H. Murray, published in the years after World War Two. The thought begins to dawn on the reader - this reader anyway - that Martin Moran is in some ways a man out of time, the living embodiment of the magical spirit of exploration and discovery of his predecessors in the mountains of Scotland, the Alps and the Himalaya, in the 1930s and 1940s. This book is a “must read” for anyone who has ever felt drawn to the mountains, whether in Scotland or beyond. http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/usreviews/books/sandstonehigher.html 2014-04-06T18:53:25+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/four_sandstone_press_titles_in_amazon_kindle_spring_sale/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/four_sandstone_press_titles_in_amazon_kindle_spring_sale/ We are very pleased that four Sandstone Press titles have been selected in the Amazon Kindle spring promotion. They are:- Tell Me Where You Are Moira Forsyth 99p Tom Weir; an anthology Ed: Hamish Brown £1.49 The Famous and the Dead T. Jefferson Parker 99p The Interpretations David Shaw MacKenzie 99p 2014-04-04T13:38:58+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/record_month_for_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2014/record_month_for_sandstone_press/ For the first time we are publishing six titles in a single month. All of them are brilliant and we think you will be hearing more of them. In alphabetical order by the author’s names, here goes:- Nigheanan Mora by Catriona Lexy Campbell’s second title for us, her first in our new Lasag imprint. A Gaelic language novella it is aimed at readers wishing to improve their command of the language. How to dispose of dead elephants by Andrew Gretes is a delightful coming of age novel by a brilliant young American novelist we stole from under the noses of the big US publishing houses. The Stillman by Tom McCulloch is a mystery thriller that treats single malt whisky, always dear to our hearts in these parts, Cuba, and mother son relations. Electric! The Kerracher Man by Eric MacLeod is one of our most popular books, now brought up to date with a fabulous new cover and an additional chapter to describe how Kerracher came back to the MacLeod family. Columba’s Iona by Rosalind K Marshall is the new history of Iona which we published with such success as a hardback in 2013. Now reissued as a paperback it comes at a more affordable price and with a beautifully enhanced cover. Daunderlust by Peter Ross is already making a mark having being appreciative tweeted about by none other than Scotland’s star crime author, Ian Rankin. 2014-04-03T15:57:23+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/press_release/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/press_release/ Sandstone Press hire Ruth Killick Publicity to handle media relations Sandstone Press, the award-winning Scottish Independent who last year secured their second Man Booker longlisting have hired Ruth Killick Publicity to handle their PR. Ruth Killick, Lucy Ramsey and the RKP team will work with Eilidh Smith, Sandstone’s inhouse publicist, on Sandstone’s English-language titles. This year’s frontlist includes highlights such as Liel Leibovitz’s biography of Leonard Cohen, A Broken Hallelujah (May), John McPake and the Sea Beggars, the debut novel by Stuart Campbell, author of Boswell’s Bus Pass (June); Cormac James’ debut novel The Surfacing (September), which has already received advance praise from John Boyne, Colum McCann and Rose Tremain; and The Hunting Dogs (May), the new novel from bestselling Norwegian crime novelist Jorn Lier Horst. Based in the Scottish highlands, Sandstone have a growing reputation for cutting-edge international writing.  They publish twenty-two books per year and are represented by Faber Factory Plus.  Sandstone managing director Robert Davidson, says:  ‘Sandstone Press is delighted to welcome the experience and many talents of Ruth Killick Publicity into an expanding, strengthening team. With MDL distributing and Faber Factory taking our books to the Trade, Dufour Editions to North America, and, now, RKP to the wider public, this is a period of rapid development for the company. It is also interesting to note a new geography in publishing, between Highland Scotland, South Wales, and Metropolitan London. Our aim remains the same, to bring the best of contemporary, quality reading before the public. With Ruth Killick Publicity we are better able to do it by far.’ Ruth Killick says: ‘We’re really excited to join Sandstone Press at this important time in their growth.  They have an incredibly diverse and stimulating list – the kind of titles that made us all want to work in the book industry in the first place. We’re very much looking forward to being part of the company’s continued success.’ 2014-03-20T13:37:40+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/closed_for_winter_shortlisted_for_the_petrona_award/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/closed_for_winter_shortlisted_for_the_petrona_award/ The Petrona Award committee has released this press announcement (embargoed until 7.30 am this morning, Thursday 6th March 2014). Sandstone Press is delighted that Jorn Lier Horst and his English-language translator, Anne Bruce, have been recognised in this way, and note the judges’ assessment as follows: CLOSED FOR WINTER: ‘This highly atmospheric novel sees Chief Inspector Wisting investigate an off-season burglary and a disturbing case of murder on the Norwegian coast of Vestfold. As ever, author Jørn Lier Horst’s police background lends the novel a striking authenticity, with readers treated to the outstanding plotting and characterisation that typify this quality series.’ PRESS RELEASE Announcing the shortlist for: The 2014 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year The shortlist for the 2014 award, is as follows: CLOSED FOR WINTER by Jørn Lier Horst tr. Anne Bruce (Sandstone Press) STRANGE SHORES by Arnaldur Indriðason tr. Victoria Cribb (Harvill Secker) THE WEEPING GIRL by Håkan Nesser tr. Laurie Thompson (Mantle) LINDA, AS IN THE LINDA MURDER by Leif G W Persson tr. Neil Smith (Doubleday) SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir tr. Philip Roughton (Hodder & Stoughton) LIGHT IN A DARK HOUSE by Jan Costin Wagner tr. Anthea Bell (Harvill Secker) The winning title will be announced at the annual international crime fiction event CrimeFest, held in Bristol 15-18 May 2014. The winning author’s prize will include a full pass to and a guaranteed panel at the 2015 CrimeFest event The judges are: Barry Forshaw – Writer and journalist specialising in crime fiction and film; author of four books covering Scandinavian crime fiction: NORDIC NOIR, DEATH IN A COLD CLIMATE, EURO NOIR and the first biography of Stieg Larsson. Dr. Katharina Hall – Associate Professor of German at Swansea University; currently editing CRIME FICTION IN GERMAN for University of Wales Press; international crime fiction reviewer/blogger at MRS. PEABODY INVESTIGATES. Sarah Ward – Online crime fiction reviewer and blogger at CRIMEPIECES; English language teacher based in Manchester. Leading Scandinavian crime fiction expert Barry Forshaw said “I’m delighted to be judging an award that is unique in recognising the influence of Scandinavian crime fiction in both the UK and abroad”. The award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia and published in the UK in the previous calendar year. More information can be found on the Petrona Award website (http://www.petronaaward.co.uk). -ends- Notes to editors The Petrona Award was established to celebrate the work of Maxine Clarke, one of the first online crime fiction reviewers and bloggers, who died in December 2012. Maxine, whose online persona and blog was called Petrona, was passionate about translated crime fiction but in particular that from the Scandinavian countries. The winner of the 2013 Petrona Award was Liza Marklund for LAST WILL, translated by Neil Smith. For further information, or for an interview with any of the judges, please contact the administrator Karen Meek (admin@petronaaward.co.uk.). The judges’ comments on the shortlist: CLOSED FOR WINTER: This highly atmospheric novel sees Chief Inspector Wisting investigate an off-season burglary and a disturbing case of murder on the Norwegian coast of Vestfold. As ever, author Jørn Lier Horst’s police background lends the novel a striking authenticity, with readers treated to the outstanding plotting and characterisation that typify this quality series. STRANGE SHORES: Drawn back to his childhood home by the unresolved disappearance of his brother, Inspector Erlendur takes on the most personal and difficult case of his career. Exploring the series’ enduring themes of loss and the impact of Iceland’s twentieth-century social transformation, this remarkable valedictory novel is one of the finest by a truly incisive writer, the undisputed king of Icelandic crime fiction. THE WEEPING GIRL: While supposedly on holiday, Detective Inspector Ewa Moreno is pulled into the case of a missing teenage girl and the much earlier murder of a woman. This quietly compelling novel from Swedish author Håkan Nesser, with its distinctive European feel, is full of the assurance readers have come to expect from the Van Veeteren series. There is not a single misstep as the grim implications of the narrative are teased out. LINDA, AS IN THE LINDA MURDER:  Leif G W Persson’s sprawling, state-of-the-nation novels make deft use of crime fiction conventions to expose the faultlines of Swedish society. This more closely focused novel is a brilliant exploration of a young woman’s murder, press sensationalism, and the inner workings of a police investigation, with readers introduced to the blackly humorous and truly unforgettable police detective Evert Bäckström for the first time. SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME: When a young man with Down’s Syndrome is convicted of arson and murder, lawyer Thóra Gudmundsdóttir is hired by one of his fellow inmates to investigate a possible miscarriage of justice. This ambitious Icelandic crime novel, which skilfully weaves multiple narrative strands together with elements of the supernatural, is another gripping and highly entertaining read from author Yrsa Sigurðardóttir. LIGHT IN A DARK HOUSE: Still mourning the loss of his wife, Finnish detective Kimmo Joentaa is called to investigate the strange murder of a comatose woman in hospital. German author Jan Costin Wagner delivers another wonderfully written and tightly constructed instalment in the Joentaa series, notable for its moving portrayal of a grief-stricken policeman and its in-depth exploration of victim and perpetrator psychology.   2014-03-06T08:48:07+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/new_catalogue_for_2014_and_march_releases/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2014/new_catalogue_for_2014_and_march_releases/ We are delighted that our new 2014 catalogue has now goner to print. Booksellers and reviewers will have their copies just as soon as we can get them away on arrival. It’s a beauty and worth waiting for but, if you can’t wait, the PDF can be downloaded from just below the menu on each of our web site pages. We have three new titles leaving the warehouse in this the busiest year of Sandstone Press’s lifetime to date. Titles as follow:- Feur Buidhe an t-Samhraidh (Yellow Summer Grass). Tim Armstrong’s first novella for us is aimed at learners of Gaelic, but can be enjoyed by all Gaelic readers, and is the first fruit of our new partnership with the Gaelic Books Council. Ebook on the way! Higher Ground (a mountain guide’s life). Martin Moran’s unputdownable memoir provides a jaw dropping look at an extraordinary life, indeed an extraordinary lifestyle. King of Cuba. Cristina Garcia is a great American author of our time, too long ignored as a satirist and novelist working on some of the great themes of our era. All in all, a great catalogue and some books you really do not want to miss. 2014-03-05T17:24:06+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/publishing_scotland_conference_2014/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/publishing_scotland_conference_2014/ Publishing Scotland will be holding its annual conference at the Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow, on Tuesday 4th March. Sandstone Press Managing Director Robert Davidson will be participating in a Trade Panel Discussion chaired by Philip Jones of The Bookseller along with Gillian Robertson of Looking Glass Books, Edinburgh, Lynne O’Neill of John Smith & Son, Glasgow, Duncan Furness of Waterstones, Sarah Mitchell of Leckie and Leckie, part of Harper Collins, and Keith Charters of Strident Publishing. Publishing Scotland say:- We are holding our annual conference with the Booksellers Association again this year. There is a full programme with separate sessions for publishers and booksellers as well as joint sessions. There will be an opportunity for publishers to pitch titles to booksellers in the Scottish Fever Pitch session or attend a choice of workshops. There will also be time for networking and a drinks reception at the end of the day. 2014-02-28T11:15:53+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/the_extinction_of_snow_frederick_lightfoots_new_novel_is_out/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/the_extinction_of_snow_frederick_lightfoots_new_novel_is_out/ We are delighted to announce that Frederick Lightfoot’s new novel, successor to My Name is E, is now on the shelves. Tense and sensitive, a drip feed of revelation, this tale of a grieving mother learning bout the adult son she has lost, will have you on the edge of your seat. It must also have one of the most intriguing titles of the year. The Extinction of Snow is available online and as an ebook. 2014-02-19T12:53:51+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/publishing_programme_september_2014_to_march_2015/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2014/publishing_programme_september_2014_to_march_2015/ On Tuesday February 11, Editorial Director Moira Forsyth will be presenting our publishing programme for September 2014 to March 2015, to the sales team at the Faber Factory Plus Conference. The eleven titles will include the winner of the first Manchester Metropolitan University Novella Competition, a remarkable initiative which we are confident will bring some fabulous new literature into the world. It is a partnership we are very enthusiastic about and which has tremendous potential. The rest of the list is wide and varied so please do flick through the slide show (see link below) and visit the Forthcoming page on this web site where you can read more about these titles as well as our more immediately pending books to be released between now and then. Sept_2014_-_March_2015.pdf FOR THE TRADE: Advance Information Sheets can be downloaded from the link at the bottom of every book page. Our 2014 catalogue should also be downloadable from about the end of the month. 2014-02-11T22:40:35+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/new_prize_signals_change_in_reading_habits/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/new_prize_signals_change_in_reading_habits/ Manchester Metropolitan University is launching a new international prize for novellas that is aimed squarely at e-reader users in search of good short reads.  The MMU Novella Award, established by the Department of Contemporary Arts in Manchester Metropolitan University’s Cheshire Faculty, partnered by Sandstone Press and Time to Read, will reward the winning entrant with a £1,000 cash prize. Sandstone Press, who have twice had titles long-listed for the Man Booker Prize, will publish the winning novella, which must be between 20,000 and 40,000 words long. Diana Beaumont of Rupert Heath Literary Agency will give serious consideration to offering the winning author representation. “The short novel is experiencing a renaissance at the moment.  It’s ideal for book lovers who are on the move and using tablets and e-readers,” said Robert Graham, Creative Writing Programme Leader at MMU Cheshire. Robert Davidson, Managing Director of Sandstone Press said, “The novella is a form that has given us such classic works as Annie Proulx’s Brokeback Mountain and Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea.  Sandstone Press is proud to be MMU’s partner in this fine project.” Novelist Jenn Ashworth, author of A Kind of Intimacy and Cold Light, will lead the judging panel. The Sunday Times described Jenn’s latest book as “Utterly, compulsively readable. The Friday Gospels could be this award-winning young author’s best novel yet.” Jane Mathieson, coordinator of Time To Read, a partnership between twenty-two library authorities in the North West, said, “Novellas can get lost on library shelves, so this gives us an opportunity to bring them to the attention of readers.  We will also be supporting entrants to the competition by hosting a series of writing workshops. It’s exciting to be in at the start of something new.” The winner of the award will be announced at a one-day Novella Festival, held at MMU’s Cheshire campus in July 2014, where there will also be readings, talks and panel discussions. The closing date for the competition is 23 May 2014. http://www.mmunovellaaward.org.uk      2014-01-22T09:58:48+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/sandstone_press_acquires_the_spice_box_letters_by_eve_makis/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/sandstone_press_acquires_the_spice_box_letters_by_eve_makis/ New Deal Between Man-Booker-Success Agent And Publisher Sandstone Press Acquires The Spice Box Letters by Eve Makis, to be published in the centenary year of the Armenian Tragedy Following the international success of The Marrying of Chani Kaufman, Eve Harris’s Man Booker longlister, Robert Davidson has agreed a second Sandstone Press deal with Diana Beaumont of the Rupert Heath Literary Agency. The Spice Box Letters is the story of a young woman’s search for her family origins through the written memories of her Armenian grandmother. Robert Davidson, Director of Sandstone Press said:- ‘We are delighted to welcome such an accomplished novelist as Eve Makis to our list. Her novel is highly timeous in that it looks back, with an unflinching eye, to the terrible events of the Armenian genocide of 1915, widely regarded as the first of the 20th century, and its aftermath. It speaks of exile and diaspora, subjects that are close to our hearts here in Highland Scotland, and chimes with other Sandstone books such as Remzije Sherifi’s Shadow Behind the Sun, Urszula Muskus’s The Long Bridge, and Linda Spalding’s The Purchase. It is also a love story, in fact several love stories, but the story of one undying love in particular.’ Diana Beaumont, Agent commented:- ‘I am delighted that Eve Makis will be published by Sandstone Press. They are a passionate, dedicated team and Eve is a talented writer with an important story to tell so it feels like a very good fit, not least because I have had an excellent experience working with Sandstone, and Faber Factory Plus, on The Marrying of Chani Kaufman. I am also pleased that Eve’s first novel, Eat, Drink and Be Married, which has sold over 22,000 copies will be reissued as an e-book.’ Eve Makis, author added: - ‘Many thanks to Sandstone Press for welcoming me to their multicultural mix. I would like to think of the book as a spice box, not only peppered by tragedy, but also evoking a distinct sense of culture through food, folklore and customs, an attempt to balance a dark, turbulent past with a lighter, more hopeful present. It is essentially a story about intimate family secrets, slowly unraveled and the enduring quality of love.’ For further rights queries contact Diana Beaumont: diana.beaumont@rupertheath.com For further details or images to accompany this story, please contact Eilidh Smith on 07901 914 596 or by email to eilidh@sandstonepress.com   ENDS Monday, January 6, 2014 2014-01-08T10:55:33+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/closed_for_winter_is_kindle_daily_deal_for_wednesday_8th_january/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/closed_for_winter_is_kindle_daily_deal_for_wednesday_8th_january/ We are very pleased that Jorn Lier Horst’s Closed for Winter is today’s Daily Deal on Amazon. The second of his William Wisting mysteries is proving immensely popular with crime lovers and critics alike. Don’t miss this opportunity to take the download for only 99p. Meanwhile, the first book in the series published in English, Dregs, continues to be read and talked about, and we look forward to publishing the third, The Hunting Dogs, in May. 2014-01-08T07:21:45+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/the_marrying_of_chani_kaufman_as_kindle_daily_deal_today_sunday_5th_january/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2014/the_marrying_of_chani_kaufman_as_kindle_daily_deal_today_sunday_5th_january/ We bid a very special welcome today to visitors from Germany and France. Today, Sunday 5th January, The Marrying of Chani Kaufman by Eve Harris is Amazon’s Kindle Daily Deal in Great Britain, Ireland and, for the first time, Germany and France. On Amazon.co.uk the book is only 99p. This is a stunning offer which Kindle users (who have not already read the Man Booker longlister) will not want to go past them. 2014-01-05T08:50:21+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/happy_new_year_from_all_of_us_at_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/happy_new_year_from_all_of_us_at_sandstone_press/ We send our best wishes for all our web site visitors for 2014. There is a longer message on our Facebook which you can access from this page. 2013-12-31T15:56:30+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/four_sandstone_press_titles_available_on_amazons_12_days_of_kindle_across_c/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/four_sandstone_press_titles_available_on_amazons_12_days_of_kindle_across_c/ We are delighted to have four titles available on Amazon’s 12 Days of Kindle promotion. At 99p these are tremendous bargains. BROCK’S AGENT Tom Taylor ‘A great read with colourful characters and lots of action.’ Globe and Mail (Canada) THE OTTOMAN MOTEL Christopher Currie ‘Small-town Australia at its most sinister.’ Jane Rogers, author of The Testament of Jessie Lamb JAMMY DODGER Kevin Smith ‘A Bohemian Rhapsody.’ Sunday Times SITE WORKS Robert Davidson ‘Don t be fooled: this is a real life engineering project and these are the men and their machines who made it happen and Robert Davidson is their brilliant chronicler. In his words the technical and the mundane, the endless body-destroying hard graft, the awfulness of the Highland winter weather, all come together to create something fine.’ Charles Gorer in The Northern Times 2013-12-25T12:06:05+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/sandstone_press_partners_manchester_metropolitan_university_in_new_internat/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/sandstone_press_partners_manchester_metropolitan_university_in_new_internat/ New Prize Signals Change in Reading Habits Manchester Metropolitan University’s Novella Award For immediate release Manchester Metropolitan University is launching a new international prize for novellas that is aimed squarely at e-reader users in search of good short reads.  The MMU Novella Award, established by the Department of Contemporary Arts in Manchester Metropolitan University’s Cheshire Faculty, partnered by Sandstone Press and Time to Read, will reward the winning entrant with a £1,000 cash prize. Sandstone Press, who have twice had titles long-listed for the Man Booker Prize, will publish the winning novella, which must be between 20,000 and 40,000 words long. Diana Beaumont of Rupert Heath Literary Agency will give serious consideration to offering the winning author representation. “The short novel is experiencing a renaissance at the moment.  It’s ideal for book lovers who are on the move and using tablets and e-readers,” said Robert Graham, Creative Writing Programme Leader at MMU Cheshire. Robert Davidson, Managing Director of Sandstone Press said, “The novella is a form that has given us such classic works as Annie Proulx’s Brokeback Mountain and Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea.  Sandstone Press is proud to be MMU’s partner in this fine project.” Novelist Jenn Ashworth, author of A Kind of Intimacy and Cold Light, will lead the judging panel. The Sunday Times described Jenn’s latest book as “Utterly, compulsively readable. The Friday Gospels could be this award-winning young author’s best novel yet.” Jane Mathieson, coordinator of Time To Read, a partnership between twenty-two library authorities in the North West, said, “Novellas can get lost on library shelves, so this gives us an opportunity to bring them to the attention of readers.  We will also be supporting entrants to the competition by hosting a series of writing workshops. It’s exciting to be in at the start of something new.” The winner of the award will be announced at a one-day Novella Festival, held at MMU’s Cheshire campus in July 2014, where there will also be readings, talks and panel discussions. The closing date for the competition is 23 May 2014. Further details: Kat Dibbits at MMU 0161 247 5278 / Eilidh Smith at Sandstone Press 07901 914 596 http://www.mmunovellaaward.org.uk      MMU Novella Award     @MMUNovellaAward http://www.sandstonepress.com  / http://www.jennashworth.co.uk / http://www.time-to-read.co.uk  2013-12-16T11:18:16+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/chris_townsend_is_appointed_ambassador_for_hillwalking_by_the_british_mount/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/chris_townsend_is_appointed_ambassador_for_hillwalking_by_the_british_mount/ We are delighted to learn that Chris Townsend, author of Grizzly Bears and Razor Clamd and 2014’s Rattlesnakes and Bald eagles, has been appointed the British Mountaineering Council’s first Amabassador for Hillwalking. The BMC press release is below. One of the world’s most respected experts on long-distance walking and backpacking is to become the BMC’s first hill walking ambassador. A renowned writer, photographer and gear expert, Chris Townsend has chalked up more than 15,000 miles in the wild places of North America, Scandinavia and Scotland through a dozen huge solo walks. Between his adventures he has authored 15 books including the Backpacker’s Handbook, now in its fourth edition, and contributed to The Great Outdoors Magazine as equipment editor for more than 20 years. Chris also recently starred in ‘The Cairngorms in Winter’, a stunningly-shot film by Terry Abraham (Chris is interviewed about the experience of filming The Cairngorms in Winter here.) The BMC ambassador scheme aims to provide role models that will inspire and engage new hill walkers, climbers and mountaineers. Chris is the first hill walker to become an ambassador. Chris said: “Having been a member and supporter of the BMC for over 30 years I am honoured to be the BMC’s first hill walking ambassador. “In this role I hope to promote hill walking and inspire and inform hill walkers and show them why the BMC is important. The BMC’s work on access and conservation is essential for the future of hill walking and should be supported by all hill walkers.” Chris was the first person to walk the 1,600-mile length of the Canadian Rockies, and has completed the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail and the 3,100-mile Continental Divide Trail.  He has also climbed all of the 517 Scottish (3000’+) Munros and Tops in the first ever continuous walk (1700 miles and 575,000 feet of ascent). This summer he completed a two-month walk along the 1,200km length of the Scottish watershed. Carey Davies, BMC Hill Walking Development Officer, said: “We are thrilled to have Chris as our new hill walking ambassador. His walks and his accompanying books and articles have been a great source of guidance to many getting into the outdoors. “Chris started out his walking life doing things many ‘ordinary’ folk have done - spending weekends in the Lake District and walking the Pennine Way. He shows it is within the ability of all us to get out there and experience the life-changing power of mountains and wild places.” 2013-12-10T17:00:05+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/two_more_sandstone_press_books_on_amazon_kindle_promotion/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2013/two_more_sandstone_press_books_on_amazon_kindle_promotion/ We are delighted to let you know that Rosy Thornton’s Ninepins is on Amazon Kindle ‘100 Titles under £2.99) promotion right through December (and into the small numbers of January 2014). You can click on here:- Ninepins Rosy Thornton 2013-12-03T10:00:17+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/linda_spaldings_the_purchase_is_longlisted_for_the/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/linda_spaldings_the_purchase_is_longlisted_for_the/ We are delighted to announce that The Purchase by Linda Spalding has reached the longlist of the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award having been nominated by two Canadian Libraries. First published by McLelland and Stewart in Canada the book is leaving our warehouse now on its first UK and Ireland release. Calgary and Ottawa Public Libraries have this to say: ‘Winner of the 2012 Governor General’s Literary Award. One man’s betrayal of his own moral code creates unforeseen ripples that sweep over multiple generations. With meticulous yet seamless attention to historical detail, Linda Spalding transports the reader to 18th century Virginia in this mesmerizing work. The Purchase is an epic novel in scope, depth and heart. An incredibly gripping story about the purchase of a slave by a Quaker man, and what ensues for his family in early 19th century Virginia. The mature writing style carries a strong tale, interwoven with moral ambiguity.’ You can learn more about the Prize here: http://www.impacdublinaward.ie/ 2013-11-13T11:25:08+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/extensive_kobo_promotion_for_sandstone_press_books/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/extensive_kobo_promotion_for_sandstone_press_books/ We are delighted that the ebook retailer Kobo will be promoting the following Sandstone Press titles with a 30% off voucher sale. For more information (and to purchase!) please visit the Kobo web site. Dregs                                 Jorn Lier Horst Closed for Winter                       Jorn Lier Horst The Jaguar                                 T Jefferson Parker The Famous and the Dead                 T Jefferson Parker The Woman Who Walked Into The Sea Mark Douglas-Home The Ottoman Motel                     Christopher Currie The Folded Man                           Matt Hill The Interpretations                     David Shaw MacKenzie Brock’s Agent                           Tom Taylor Anywhere’s Better Than Here           Zoe Venditozzi Tell Me Where You Are                 Moira Forsyth The Long Bridge                     Urszula Muskus The Tailor of Inverness                 Matthew Zajac The New Northwest Passage           Cameron Dueck Hartsend                                 Janice Brown 2013-11-07T14:53:13+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/introducing_the_purchase_by_linda_spalding/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2013/introducing_the_purchase_by_linda_spalding/ This month (November 2013) Sandstone Press will publish The Purchase, possibly the finest novel of pre-abolition America you are likely to read. In it, Linda Spalding traces and fictionalises the life of one of her own ancestors, Daniel Dickinson. Daniel, a Quaker father and widower leaves Pennsylvania for southwestern Virginia with his new wife and young family. There, against the teachings of his faith and almost by accident, he purchases a slave whose name is Onesimus. The consequences will run down the generations. The Purchase is a resonant, powerful and timeless novel which has already won the Governor General’s Prize in Linda Spalding’s home country of Canada where she lives in Toronto with her husband, the novelist Michael Ondaatje. Of this novel it has already been said: ‘An historical novel about race, religion and family, Linda Spalding’s The Purchase is refreshingly free of retrospective judgment. Told in warm, dignified prose, the novel concerns a shunned Quaker man who moves his family to slave-holding Virginia. Out of misplaced compassion, he buys a slave boy at an auction, forever changing many lives.’ The Governor General’s Literary Award citation ‘The haunting story of an early American Quaker family that kept me up all night till I’d read it. This 6-out-of-5 book is as gut-wrenching as it is beautiful and won’t let you go, even if you wanted it to.’ The Bookbag Sandstone Press has furnished the book with a deeply beautiful cover designed for us by Chris Shamwana. The Purchase will be our final publication for 2013. Our programme for 2014 is almost complete and you can see the list, as it presently, almost finally, stands on the Forthcoming page of this web site. We are closing the publishing year (but very much not the selling year) with a beauty. 2013-11-01T11:19:40+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2013/after_the_frankfurt_book_fair_2013_significant_reprints_and_news/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2013/after_the_frankfurt_book_fair_2013_significant_reprints_and_news/ Photographs from our first visit to the Frankfurt Book Fair can be found on our Facebook. Sandstone Press met with many representatives and agents from all over the world and we anticipate some very special books to come. Meanwhile we have been in discussions with the Blake Friedman Agency in London and have just closed on a wonderful novel from the Irish writer (now resident in France) Cormac James. Blake Friedman’s press release will appear in our blogspot below this News release very soon (it may be there when you read this). We are highly chuffed to report that Jorn Lier Horst’s ‘Closed for Winter’ is proving so popular that we have gone to reprint on the day BEFORE its formal release. ‘The Sunlit Summit’, Robin Lloyd-Jones’s biography of Scottish climber, travel writer and novelist, explorer and conservationist, W. H. Murray, has also gone to reprint less than two months after publication. Sandstone Press works every day to bring the best of contemporary, quality reading to our customers. 2013-10-17T14:52:31+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/sandstone_press_slide_show_april_to_august_2013/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/sandstone_press_slide_show_april_to_august_2013/ Editorial Director Moira Forsyth presented these thirteen titles to the Faber Factory Plus team on Wednesday 18th September. Not all covers are yet completely finalised (although most are), especially those of Bradley Greenburg and Kenneth Calman. Buyers should please note that individual Information Sheets can be downloaded from the foot of the book pages. 2013-09-23T09:03:24+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/man_booker_prize_2013/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/man_booker_prize_2013/ We are sad not to be continuing in this year’s Man Booker journey but are delighted that the longlisting of The Marrying of Chani Kaufman by Eve Harris has been brought so quickly to the attention of the world’s reading public. Huge numbers have gone out across Britain and Ireland, and copies will be appearing in travel hubs very soon. Audio and large print versions will soon be available thanks to the services of our colleagues at W F Howes. American and Canadian editions are on the way, as are translations into German, Hebrew and more. Sandstone Press Managing Director Robert Davidson says: ‘Once again, following the longlisting in 2011 of The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers, we salute this great event and sincerely thank the organisers, the judging panel, this year chaired by Robert Macfarlane, our colleagues at Four Colman Getty, and of course the sponsors, Man Booker. We wish those authors and publishers who continue into the short list well and look forward to the announcement of this year’s winner.’ 2013-09-10T12:01:25+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/its_a_hill_get_over_it/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2013/its_a_hill_get_over_it/ If there was a prize for ‘Most Imaginative and Amusing Title’ this month’s beautiful release, titled as above, would probably take it. Steve Chilton, a dedicated fell runner of many years standing (if standing is the right word) has produced the first and definitive history of his sport. He has delivered a beautiful text, to match his great concept, and added to it a brilliant photo section, tables, records, and interviews with the great runners of past and present. Added to Steve’s tremendous efforts, Heather MacPherson, Raspberryhmac Creative Type in Edinburgh, has brought her native talent and the skills she has developed across several Sandstone Press books (The Oldest Post Office in the World. Grizzly Bears and Razor Clams and The Ancient Pinewoods of Scotland) to the design table. Between them they have produced one of the most impressive of all our titles, a ‘must have’ for all fell runners, all runners generally, and all lovers of the Great Outdoors from Ben Nevis to the Lakes and beyond. 2013-09-05T06:55:57+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/seamus_heaney/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/seamus_heaney/ We are deeply sorry to learn of the death this morning of Seamus Heaney at the age of 74. His was possibly the most instantly recognised poetic voice to sound over the last five decades in Ireland, Britain, the United States, and across the English speaking world. As most readers will be aware he was published throughout that time by our colleagues at Faber and Faber to whom we extend our sympathies as we do to the Heaney family and his many friends and colleagues as a poet, essayist and teacher. We can do no better than to direct you to this statement on the Faber and Faber web site: http://faber.co.uk/content/seamus-heaney-1939-2013 Digging Between my finger and my thumb   The squat pen rests; snug as a gun. Under my window, a clean rasping sound   When the spade sinks into gravelly ground:  My father, digging. I look down Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds   Bends low, comes up twenty years away   Stooping in rhythm through potato drills   Where he was digging. The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft   Against the inside knee was levered firmly. He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep To scatter new potatoes that we picked, Loving their cool hardness in our hands. By God, the old man could handle a spade.  Just like his old man. My grandfather cut more turf in a day Than any other man on Toner’s bog. Once I carried him milk in a bottle Corked sloppily with paper. He straightened up To drink it, then fell to right away Nicking and slicing neatly, heaving sods Over his shoulder, going down and down For the good turf. Digging. The cold smell of potato mould, the squelch and slap Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge Through living roots awaken in my head. But I’ve no spade to follow men like them. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests. I’ll dig with it. 2013-08-30T11:29:35+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/ten_sandstone_press_ebooks_on_weekend_promotion_from_kobo/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/ten_sandstone_press_ebooks_on_weekend_promotion_from_kobo/ We are delighted to announce that the following ten titles will be available on weekend promotion from Kobo beginning this Friday 23rd August 2013 with 30% off the usual price. We heartily recommend them all. 9781908737182 The House of Trembling Leaves         Julian Lees 9781905207831 The Sea Detective                     Mark Douglas-Home 9781905207794 Dregs                               Jorn Lier Horst 9781908737076 Anywhere’s Better Than Here         Zoe Venditozzi 9781908737274 The Interpretations                     David Shaw Mackenzie 9781905207701 Site Works                         Robert Davidson 9781908737229 Brock’s Agent                         Tom Taylor 9781908737090 Jammy Dodger                         Kevin Smith 9781905207527 Tell Me Where You Are               Moira Forsyth 9781905207862 Ninepins                               Rosy Thornton 2013-08-21T15:45:06+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/more_new_books_for_your_summer_and_winter_reading/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2013/more_new_books_for_your_summer_and_winter_reading/ We are delighted to announce the publication of three new titles for August. THE SUNLIT SUMMIT is the highly anticipated biography of climber, author and environmentalist W H Murray, a labour of love for its author, Robin Lloyd-Jones. Robert Macfarlane provided the perfect foreword to this splendid and beautiful volume. THE FAMOUS AND THE DEAD is T Jefferson Parker’s sequel to 2010’s The Jaguar and the closing story in his series of Charlie Hood mysteries. If you are even an occasional visitor to this web site and our Facebook you will already know that THE MARRYING OF CHANI KAUFMAN, Eve Harris’s brilliant novel of Orthodox Jews in London, has reached the long list of this year’s Man Booker Prize. We are incredibly proud of Eve and her book, and our fingers are tightly crossed for the short list. Meanwhile, we brought the publication forward from late September to the 1st August and have been working steadily to satisfy what seems to be an insatiable appetite for this title. We ran out of copies on the day our first (exceptionally large) print run arrived and are expecting the second print run today (Thursday 15th). A third print run is already on the way. We are also tremendously pleased that Zoe Venditozzi has reached the six book short list of the Not The Booker Prize, run by The Guardian, with Anywhere’s Better Than Here. Not a bad double by any standard! 2013-08-15T11:18:43+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/three_great_kindle_summer_promotions_from_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/three_great_kindle_summer_promotions_from_sandstone_press/ We are delighted to announce that Amazon Kindle have chosen three superb Sandstone Press novels for their summer promotions between July 26th and September 5th. They are:- The Folded Man by Matthew Hill at only £1.09 the element -inth in Greek by Alison Fell at only £0.99 Ninepins by Rosy Thornton at only £0.99 Ebook readers will not want to miss this wonderful opportunity to extend their virtual library with three titles which are not only superb summer reading but quality books in any company. 2013-07-26T07:36:31+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/press_release_the_marrying_of_chani_kaufman_by_eve_harris_longlisted_for_th/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/press_release_the_marrying_of_chani_kaufman_by_eve_harris_longlisted_for_th/ Debut Novelist Makes Man Booker Long List Eve Harris’s stunning first novel about the Jewish community in north London is selected for the Booker Dozen. Sandstone Press is delighted to learn that the forthcoming title The Marrying of Chani Kaufman by first time author Eve Harris has been long-listed for this year’s Man Booker Prize. The company is bringing publication forward to the earliest possible date for both paperback and ebook and is printing in increased numbers now. Sandstone Press founder and Managing Director Robert Davidson commented: ‘Congratulations first of all go to debut author Eve Harris on her astonishing achievement. With her first published novel she has achieved an incredibly engaging, sympathetic and often very funny narrative revolving around the great fulcrum of the 21st century, the collision of traditional religion and the modern world. Her story is about the Orthodox Jewish community in London, and especially about the place of women in it. Sandstone Press is proud to publish this fine new author and her wise, humane and important book. ‘This is the second Sandstone Press appearance in the Man Booker long-list in two years, The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers having appeared in 2011 with notable and continuing success. Over these two years the company has continued in rapid development in partnership with our selling agents at Faber Factory Plus and with the support of Creative Scotland, which we intend to continue from our base here in the Highlands of Scotland. We look forward to continuing the journey. On behalf of Sandstone Press I thank the organisers of the Man Booker Prize, their agents at Four Colman Getty and, not least, this year’s judging panel.’ On hearing the news, Eve Harris said:- “I am absolutely thrilled to be included in the Man Booker long list. I never imagined getting such an accolade for my first novel. After a night of thunderstorms and lightning and not too much sleep, it all feels unreal and unbelievable - but amazing.” For further information or images to accompany this story, contact Eilidh Smith on 07901 914 596. Notes to Editors:  Sandstone Press is a publisher of non-fiction and fiction books. Based in Highland Scotland, the company is characterized by high editorial and design standards, internationalism and a strong engagement with the contemporary world using modern methods. For more information visit http://www.sandstonepress.com Sandstone Press are represented by Faber Factory Plus. Please contact Ian West 020 7927 3808 for further details.  http://faberfactory.co.uk/faber-factory-plus/ Eve Harris was born to Israeli-Polish parents in Chiswick, West London, in 1973. She taught for 12 years at inner-city comprehensives and independent schools in London and also in Tel Aviv, after moving to Israel in 1999. She returned to London in 2002 to resume teaching at an all girls’ Catholic convent school. ‘The Marrying of Chani Kaufman’ was inspired by her final year of teaching at an all girls’ ultra-Orthodox Jewish school in North West London. Eve lives in London with her husband, Jules, and their daughter Rosie. As well as writing, Eve teaches Creative Writing at CAST, a charity offering education, training 
and employment advice to women offenders, women
 at risk of offending and women with mental health 
or substance misuse problems. Author Eve Harris was brought to Sandstone Press by agent Diana Beaumont at the Rupert Heath Literary Agency. Diana was chosen as one of the Bookseller’s rising stars of 2012. ENDS 2013-07-23T11:29:28+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/more_new_summer_reading_from_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2013/more_new_summer_reading_from_sandstone_press/ This month we are delighted to bring two brilliant works of non-fiction to you, and a great yarn from Canada. Introducing the very real Major-General Isaac Brock, Canadian author Tom Taylor also introduces his agent Jonathan Westlake and a host of colourful characters active in Canada during the Napoleonic Wars.Brock’s Agent is in the tradition of CS Forester and Bernard Cornwell the Brock books are as illuminating as they are entertaining. Matthew Zajac’s account of his father’s war years, the story he told, and the wonderfully moving truth of it all, has already made a prize-winning play. Now, with Matthew, we can bring you the whole story illustrated with many photographs in The Tailor of Inverness. This is a book which is destined to last. We are also tremendously excited to bring you the paperback edition of Stuart Campbell’s Boswell’s Bus Pass, probably the funniest book you will ever read about Scotland 2013-07-10T15:00:04+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2013/three_great_sandstone_titles_on_amazon_kindle_promotion_throughout_june/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2013/three_great_sandstone_titles_on_amazon_kindle_promotion_throughout_june/ To help you with those difficult summer reading choices Amazon is offering three great Sandstone Press titles as part of their ‘100 Books under £2.99’ throughout June. Don’t let this great opportunity go past. THE HOUSE OF TREMBLING LEAVES Julian Lees ‘A compelling novel about the power of female friendship, transcending war, time and separation.’ Rosy Thornton ONLY: £1.09 LINK TO AMAZON PAGE: http://amzn.to/1aLIWQW WHITE RIVER A journey up and down the River Findhorn Jamie Whittle ‘A journey-book in the tradition of Basho’s Narrow Road to a Far Province.’ Robert Macfarlane ONLY: £1.09 LINK TO AMAZON PAGE: http://amzn.to/19vuP4u CAIRNGORM JOHN A life in mountain rescue ‘Cairngorm John is a thoughtful book, not macho at all. It’s as much about love of the mountains as their dangers.’ Libby Purves ONLY: £1.09 LINK TO AMAZON PAGE: http://amzn.to/145xa3w These are three great books, available as ebooks at an unbelievable price for the month of June only. 2013-06-01T07:23:50+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2013/may_titles_columbas_iona_and_the_folded_man/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2013/may_titles_columbas_iona_and_the_folded_man/ Landing on bookshop shelves today are our two titles for May. Two very different books, both wonderful. Don’t let them rest there. COLUMBA’S IONA Rosalind K Marshall Commissioned by the Iona Cathedral Trust from historical author Rosalind K Marshall to mark the 1450th anniversary of Columba’s arrival on Iona, Columba’s Iona is a thorough but accessible history of the island and its influence since that time. Of tremendous interest to many will be the story of the Abbey reconstruction and the Iona Community. We have produced a beautiful hardback, to match Rosalind’s beautiful text, and three photographic section with many rarely seen images. John Hewer, of Iolaire Typesetting in Newtonmore, has done a particularly splendid job on this, mostly using Sabon but incorporating the rarely seen Columcille font into the chapter headings. The jacketed hardback is available now and the ebook will follow soon. THE FOLDED MAN Matt Hill Placed second in the hugely prestigious Dundee International Book Prize, Matt Hill has produced the most amazing novel of a coming (not long now!) dystopian Britain. Already praised to high heaven by Stephen Fry and the Dundee judges, the book is now picking up glowing reviews in the press, on the internet, and on the Amazon web site. Again, hard copy is available in the shops and on the internet now. The ebook will follow soon. 2013-05-16T19:22:00+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/jammy_dodger_longlisted_for_the_desmond_eliot_prize/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/jammy_dodger_longlisted_for_the_desmond_eliot_prize/ Congratulations are due to Irish author Kevin Smith now that we can at last reveal that his hilarious novel, Jammy Dodger, has been longlisted for the Desmond Eliot Prize 2013. The Desmond Elliott Prize is an annual award for a first novel written in English and published in the UK. Worth £10,000 to the winner, the prize is named after the literary agent and publisher, Desmond Elliott. Charismatic, witty, and waspish, Elliott lived his life with verve. He drank only champagne, always crossed the Atlantic on Concorde and lunched at Fortnum and Mason. His office was in Mayfair and he had homes in St James’s and on Park Avenue. Desmond Elliott’s resolve to support new writers will live on in the shape of the prize. When choosing the winner, a panel of three judges will look for a novel which has a compelling narrative, arresting character, and which is both vividly written and confidently realised. The Bookseller opens its article thus: Scottish indie publisher Sandstone Press has scored a nomination on the longlist for the Desmond Elliott Prize 2013 with Kevin Smith’s Jammy Dodger. If you are visiting the Sandstone Press web site for the first time after reading this press we bid you welcome. Please do read Jammy Dodger (chances are you will love it) but also browse around our many other fiction and non-fiction titles. 2013-04-25T09:40:04+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/new_titles_for_april/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/new_titles_for_april/ We are very proud to announce the appearance of two great new titles. The first flush of both have left the warehouse and a second flush is now following, and it looks like these first ‘first edition, first run’ copies will soon be sold. THE WOMAN WHO WALKED INTO THE SEA Mark Douglas-Home’s second Sea Detective mystery was brilliantly reviewed by Allan Massie in The Scotsman only last weekend, as you can read (and link) elsewhere on this web site. We understand that more reviews are to follow this weekend and continuing so do keep your eyes peeled. This title is available as both paperback and ebook. THE ANCIENT PINEWOODS OF SCOTLAND Clifton Bain’s beautiful and important book is speedily being recognised as brilliantly written, timely and important. Available as a high quality hardback, it is packed with wildlife drawings by Darren Rees, photographs, and maps. Clifton will be interviewed by Mark Stephen on tomorrow’s (Saturday 20th April) Outdoor Show on Radio Scotland, and reviews will be appearing in periodicals as diverse as diverse as The Scots Magazine and Country Life. 2013-04-19T07:51:43+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/london_book_fair/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2013/london_book_fair/ Managing Director Robert Davidson and Editorial Director Moira Forsyth will be at the London Book Fair on Monday 15th and Tuesday 16th April. Already with very full schedules they will located at the Sandstone Press table within the Publishing Scotland complex at H350. If you feel you would like to drop by, please do so. 2013-04-11T09:53:47+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/new_releases_in_march/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/new_releases_in_march/ We are delighted to announce that two new titles have been released from Sandstone Press. The Ottoman Motel is the debut novel of an exciting young Australian talent, Christopher Currie. Already short listed for the Commonwealth Book Prize, Pacific Region, it has taken its home country by storm. With a cover endorsement from Jane Rogers and cover design by Guilherme Gustavo Condeixo it is available from all good bookshops and on the internet and as an ebook. First published in 2007 and one of Sandstone’s first big successes we have now made White River, Jamie Whittle’s account of his journey up and down the River Findhorn, available as a mass market paperback. With a cover endorsement from Robert Macfarlane and cover design by Latte Goldstein of River Design in Edinburgh it is available from all good bookshops, on the internet and as an ebook. Trade purchases can be made through Faber Factory Plus or directly from our distributor, MDL. Please see our Contact and Representation page. 2013-03-22T07:12:58+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/february_march_2013_newsletter/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/february_march_2013_newsletter/ This newsletter went out to our Newsgroup today, Thursday 7th March. If you would like to receive future Newsletters from Sandstone Press please simply email info@sandstonepress.com PUBLISHING FROM HIGHLAND SCOTLAND IN 2013 With spring arriving early in the Highlands of Scotland we are delighted to announce the beginning of our publishing programme for the year. More ambitious, more international than ever, we take our fiction list to the Pacific Rim, back to the Napoleonic War era and forward to a dystopian future, with great new crime and romance titles; while our non-fiction ventures into the ancient pinewoods, onto the fells, the mountains and into the skies to reflect both a sense of adventure and a real sense of concern and appreciation of our environment; we visit Columba’s Iona on the 1450th anniversary of the saint’s arrival, and return to Cold War Europe with The Tailor of Inverness. Meanwhile, our first two titles have been released in both hard paperback and ebook forms, and the second two are in the warehouse Link to Forthcoming page: http://bit.ly/gVLbXh THE HOUSE OF TREMBLING LEAVES Julian Lees Julian Lees’ follow up to 2010’s The Fan Tan Players is already garnering fine reviews. Rosy Thornton, author of last year’s Ninepins, describes it as ‘a compelling novel about the power of female friendship’. Running along a lifetime’s duration it encompasses pre-war Cambridge, occupied Malaysia, and Malaysia during the Communist Insurgency. At its heart though, is the friendship of two women and their love for a daughter. This title is available both as paperback and ebook now. Link to the Trembling Leaves book page: http://bit.ly/15xrYG2 THE NEW NORTHWEST PASSAGE Cameron Dueck With the effects of global warming ever more apparent, Cameron Dueck acquired the yacht Silent Sound and sailed through the Northwest Passage, which is now occasionally open, from the Pacific to the Atlantic around Canada’s northern coast. This feat has been accomplished by far fewer people than have stood on the summit of Everest. On this voyage to the front line of climate change the crew encountered ice, wildlife, and a native population struggling to meet the challenges that not only changing climate bring but also the modern world. Cameron’s film of the voyage, also titled The New Northwest Passage recently won Best Documentary at the Real to Real Film Festival in Winnipeg. The book is available as both paperback and ebook now. Link to the New Northwest Passage book page: http://bit.ly/RWynVM THE OTTOMAN MOTEL Christopher Currie This gripping mystery was short listed for the Commonwealth Book Prize in 2012. Jane Rogers, author of The Testament of Jessie Lamb, has this to say about it: ‘Vividly and engagingly written, THE OTTOMAN MOTEL speeds the reader through a plot full of surprising twists and turns. Small-town Australia at its most sinister.’ It is a story of injured childhood which is also tense and page turning. The Ottoman Motel will be available as paperback and ebook on the 21st March but can be pre-ordered now. Link to The Ottoman Motel book page: http://bit.ly/10jlxGF WHITE RIVER Jamie Whittle This title was one of Sandstone’s early successes and is now being made available in a more popular format across Britain and Ireland. Jamie Whittle is both an environmental lawyer and traveller. As such he brings a different voice to the planet’s very real environmental concerns but one that is as appreciative, and poetic, as that of any artist or scientist. I it Jamie walks to the source of the Findhorn in Morayshire, one of Scotland’s great rivers, and canoes back down to its mouth. White River describes what he sees and the people he meets while discussing its future and its place in the wider environment. White River will be available as paperback and ebook on the 21st March but can be pre-ordered now. Link to White River book page: http://bit.ly/WYGDsy 2013-03-07T15:30:36+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/sandstone_press_titles_september_2013_to_march_2014/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2013/sandstone_press_titles_september_2013_to_march_2014/ Sandstone Press Editorial Director Moira Forsyth used this slide show to present our titles and covers for September 2012 to March 2014 at the Faber Factory Plus Sales Conference at Bloomsbury House on Thursday 28th February. Please note that The Tailor of Inverness has been brought forward to July and that the author Matthew Zajac will be appearing at the Inverness Book Festival in August. Among many other activities Moira met with Faber and Faber’s Art Director, Donna Payne, and we have a portrait of them together on our Facebook. FFP Sales Slides February 2013 2013-03-02T12:25:27+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/cameron_dueck_wins_winnipeg_film_festival_real_to_reel_documentary_with_the/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/cameron_dueck_wins_winnipeg_film_festival_real_to_reel_documentary_with_the/ We are delighted to send our heartiest congratulations to Cameron Dueck whose film ‘The New Northwest Passage’ has won Best Documentary at the Winnipeg Film Festival.  Cameron, who directed the film, is also the author of the book The New Northwest Passage: a voyage to the front line of climate change published this month (February 2013) by Sandstone Press Ltd. We are trying to ascertain whether this brilliant film is to be distributed in Britain and Ireland and will let you know as soon as we do. Meanwhile, the book is available from all good book shops, who can order through our selling agents at Faber Factory Plus, and on the internet as both hard copy and ebook. Sandstone Press has furnished the book with an outstanding jacket and a 16 page full colour photo section. You can see the jacket and view our promotional video (which is also the film’s trailer) by visiting Cameron’s book page on this web site. All necessary links are given in Paragraph One. ENDORSEMENT FROM ALISTAIR McINTOSH, author of Hell and High Water: Climate Change, Hope and the Human Condition ‘The Arctic is the canary down the mine of climate change; the Northwest Passage its most iconic indicator. The tragedy is that Cameron Dueck found it navigable. The pleasure is his telling of the tale.’ 2013-02-24T09:52:41+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/february_publications_the_house_of_trembling_leaves_and_the_new_northwest_p/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/february_publications_the_house_of_trembling_leaves_and_the_new_northwest_p/ We are delighted to announce the publication today, Thursday 21st February 2013, of the first two books in our 2013 list. Direct access to both their Waterstones and Amazon web pages can be made from the book pages on this web site. The House of Trembling Leaves Julian Lees Following his 2010 success with The Fan Tan Players Julian Lees remains in the east with this compelling romance. His grasp and descriptions of place remain as secure as before, if not more so, as does his empathy with the people of the region. The House of Trembling Leaves is a 20th century romance about womanly friendship through life, motherhood, war, divisions and endurance. Our colleagues at Bookbag describe it as ‘an unusual story that takes us through laughter, tears and, sometimes over the edges of our seats as we witness the sort of enduring friendship that we all wish we could have’. Book page and links: http://bit.ly/15xrYG2 The New Northwest Passage: a voyage to the front line of climate change Cameron Dueck Because of global warming the fabled North West Passage is now open sufficiently to be sailed through from time to time. In fact, fewer people have done this than have stood on the summit of Everest. Cameron Dueck and his crew (not always pulling entirely together) completed this voyage and this book is their story, the story of the Passage and the people and wildlife who live around it, and a timely observation of the effects of global warming. There is also a film of the voyage and the whole endeavour inhabits the same sort of territory as another film of the moment, Chasing Ice. We have a promotional trailer on our book page. Book page: http://bit.ly/RWynVM 2013-02-21T11:23:53+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/eden_court_media_release/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/eden_court_media_release/ Media Release 13.02.2013 Eden Court Theatre and Sandstone Press are delighted to announce that as part of the Inverness Book festival which runs from Tue 06 – Sat 10 August 2013, the events taking place on the Thursday 08 August will have a distinctly Scottish theme. The final event of the evening sees the festival go gastronomic and the icing on the (tea) cake will be a light-hearted, affectionate look at Scotland’s fastest ever selling book, MAW BROON AND HER COOKBOOK. Publisher of the book, Ron Grosset will be joined by past and present Broons and Oor Wullie scriptwriters, David Donaldson and Morris Heggie in this mouth-watering event. Continuing on the Scottish theme and following the publication of of a new anthology of writings from the late Tom Weir, editor Hamish Brown, Garry Fraser and Tom’s widow, Mrs Rhona Weir will discuss the life and work of the great author and explorer in TOM WEIR: AN ANTHOLOGY. The other event of the day sees Rosalind K Marshall’s COLUMBA’S IONA: A NEW HISTORY being discussed by an esteemed panel of experts. MAW BROON AND HER COOKBOOK Since The Broons first appeared in The Sunday Post on March 8th 1936, they have become iconic Scottish characters. Paw - a small, ordinary working class man and Maw, his long suffering and larger than life wife, are parents to eight. As everyone knows, Maw is very much the homemaker and in charge of all household affairs. Hen and Joe, the two grown up sons and Maggie and Daphne the grown up daughters. The young ones are Horace, the Twins and the Bairn, a cut-down version of Maw, in nature if not in looks. Last but not least is Granpaw Broon, Paw’s father. When Maw Broon’s Cookbook was published in 2007 it became Scotland’s fastest ever selling book! The publisher behind the book, Ron Grosset, and The Broons & Oor Wullie scriptwriter of the time, David Donaldson, together with the present scriptwriter Morris Heggie, look back at how the book was created –the stooshie that ensued, and The Broons today. TOM WEIR: AN ANTHOLOGY Following the publication of a new anthology of writings, the first of the evening events will be a discussion about the life and work of the late Tom Weir Participants include, Mrs Rhona Weir, Tom Weir’s widow. Hamish Brown, editor of The Tom Weir anthology and author of Hamish’s Mountain Walk, Climbing the Corbetts, and The Oldest Post Office in the World. Completing the line up will be feature writer for the Scots Magazine, Garry Fraser. Garry’s work takes him all over the country and outside of the office his hobbies include music and hillwalking. COLUMBA’S IONA - a new history To celebrate the 1450th anniversary of Columba’s arrival on Iona, the Iona Cathedral Trust commissioned COLUMBA’S IONA: A New History, by Rosalind K Marshall, published in May 2013 by Sandstone Press. In what will be a fascinating event, the island’s history, and the book, will be discussed by a panel of experts chaired by Finlay Macdonald, former Moderator of the Church of Scotland and Chair of the Iona Cathedral Trust. Finlay will be joined by Jayne Scott, of Passage from India which encourages women’s self-reliance groups based on the Indian model, Raymond Young, an architect, and Alastair McIntosh, a Quaker, environmentalist and author of many books. Jayne, Raymond and Alastair are all members of the Iona Community. The island of Iona is close to the hearts of many people in Scotland and beyond and this discussion promises to be lively, entertaining and informative. ENDS Notes to Editors • The Inverness Book Festival will take place on 06 – 10 August 2013. • The Inverness Book Festival is an Eden Court event and in 2013 Sandstone Press a curating the programme. • Since the first Inverness Book Festival in 2004 there have been 192 events and 167 authors have appeared.  Highlights have included Jackie Kay, Ali Smith, Ian Rankin, Iain Banks, Christopher Brookmyre, Mairi Hedderwick, Andy Wightman, Richard Holloway, Michel Faber, Richard Jobson, Jeremy Strong, Joanna Blythman, Louis de Bernieres, Debi Gliori, AL Kennedy, Stuart McBride, James Kelman, Denise Mina, Lari Don, Ian Hamilton, Levi Roots, Andrew Greig, Kevin MacNeil, Grace Maxwell (with Edwyn Collins) and Alistair Urquhart • Eden Court is the largest multi-arts venue in Scotland. It re-opened in November 2007 following an extensive redevelopment programme, which saw the addition of two purpose built cinemas, a brand new flexible second theatre space and two dance and education studios. Website: http://www.eden-court.co.uk • Sandstone Press is a publisher of fiction and non-fiction books and ebooks. Based in Highland Scotland, the company is characterised by high editorial and design standards, internationalism, and a strong engagement with the contemporary world using modern methods. Sandstone Press books have won or been shortlisted for many literary prizes including the Man Booker, Commonwealth, Arthur C Clarke, Creative Scotland, Green Carnation, Saltire Society, and Boardman Tasker Awards. Sandstone Press is represented by Faber Factory Plus and Repforce Ireland, with ebooks distributed by Faber Factory Powered by Constellation. Website: http://www.sandstonepress.com Contact: Teresa Bendoris ( Marketing Manager Eden Court ) Phone: 01463 239 841 Email: tbendoris@eden-court.co.uk Website: http://www.eden-court.co.uk       2013-02-13T12:57:13+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/media_release_scandinavian_crime_continues_at_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/media_release_scandinavian_crime_continues_at_sandstone_press/ Sandstone Press is pleased to announce the October 2013 publication in paperback and ebook of Closed for Winter, the next title in the highly successful William Wisting series by Norwegian crime writer Jørn Lier Horst. Like the previous title in the series (Dregs, Sandstone Press, 2011), this book will be translated by Anne Bruce. Robert Davidson, Managing Director of Sandstone Press comments:- ‘We are very pleased to be continuing the further publication in English of the immensely popular William Wisting series by Jørn Lier Horst. Our thanks go to Gyldendal, his original publishers in Norway for their enthusiasm and cooperation in bringing this great storyteller to the English speaking world. As well as bowing to considerable pressure from fans of Jørn Lier Horst’s Dregs to continue the series, we recognise that the credibility and realism of his writing, informed by his career as an active police officer, brings a refreshing authenticity to the series and, indeed, the whole nordic noir genre.’ Barry Forshaw, author of Nordic Noir and Death in a Cold Climate, the UK’s principal expert on crime fiction, has this to say about the author:- ‘Urban rather than natural settings are the stamping grounds of Jørn Lier Horst, whose Dregs (his first book to be published in English) is immensely impressive. The writer’s career as a police chief has supplied a key ingredient for the crime fiction form: credibility.’ For further information or images to accompany this story, please contact Eilidh Smith on 07901 914 596 or eilidh@sandstonpress.com NOTES Jørn Lier Horst’s publisher in Norway is Gyldendal. Closed for Winter will be translated by Anne Bruce. About the book: Ove Bakkerud, newly separated and extremely disillusioned, is looking forward to a final quiet weekend at his summer home before closing for winter but, when the tourists leave, less welcome visitors arrive. Bakkerud’s cottage is ransacked by burglars and he discovers the body of a man who has been beaten to death. Police Inspector William Wisting has witnessed grotesque murders before, but the desperation he evident in this latest murder is something new. Against his wishes his daughter Line decides to stay in one of the summer cottages at the mouth of the fjord. Wisting’s unease does not diminish when they discover several more corpses on the deserted archipelago. Meanwhile, dead birds are dropping from the sky. About the author: Jørn Lier Horst (born 27th February 1970, in Bamble, Telemark, Norway) has worked as a policeman in Larvik since 1995 and now holds the post of Head of Investigations. He debuted as a crime writer in 2004 with his novel Key Witness, based on a true murder story and has published five further novels featuring police officer William Wisting. Familiar with the environment and the methods he writes about, the action in his books have an unrivalled authenticity in describing both the routines undertaken by the Norwegian police and the dramas they face. The William Wisting novels have been extremely successful in Germany and the Netherlands in addition to the author’s native land. About the translator: Anne Bruce is a retired head teacher residing on the Isle of Arran, now a full time literary translator. In addition to translating Dregs (2011) by Jørn Lier Horst and I Should Have Lifted You Carefully Over (2011) by Wencke Muhleisen for Sandstone Press, she is translating the Hanne Wilhelmsen series by Anne Holt for Simon & Schuster, beginning with Blessed Are Those Who Thirst (2012) and Death of the Demon (2013). She has also translated the Nordic Prize-winning Days in the History of Silence by Merethe Lindstrøm (2013). TITLE: Closed for Winter AUTHOR: Jørn Lier Horst FORMAT: B paperback ISBN: 978-1-908737-49-6 RRP: £8.99 FORMAT: Ebook ISBN: 978-1-908737-50-2 RRP: £8.99 2013-02-08T08:58:46+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/gavin_wallace_literature_director_at_the_scottish_arts_council_and_portfoli/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/gavin_wallace_literature_director_at_the_scottish_arts_council_and_portfoli/ We learned today of the sudden death of Gavin Wallace, for many years Literature Director at the Scottish Arts Council, more recently in the equivalent post with Creative Scotland. Gavin was a stout supporter of literature in Scotland and of its practitioners: authors, editors, literary magazines, festivals, and publishers; not least, readers. He was at the heart of many fine initiatives and no one knew and understood the scene better. No doubt Creative Scotland will have more to say and we understand that an announcement has already been made by Iain Munro, Director. Gavin Wallace will be a great loss, and all of us at Sandstone Press extend our sympathies to his family, his many friends, and his colleagues at Creative Scotland. 2013-02-05T18:47:31+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/two_great_new_titles_from_sandstone_press/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2013/two_great_new_titles_from_sandstone_press/ Two new titles will appear in the shops on Thursday 21st February and we really do think you should keep your eye out for them. THE HOUSE OF TREMBLING LEAVES follows on the 2010 success of Julian Lees THE FAN TAN PLAYERS. A story of female friendship and mother love from 1930s Cambridge to Malaya through the Second World War, Japanese occupation and later the Communist Insurgence, this story transcends the troubles it describes with depth of feeling and great storytelling qualities Rosy Thornton, author of Ninepins, describes it as ‘compelling’. Cover design is by Heather MacPherson at Raspberry Creative Type. THE NEW NORTHWEST PASSAGE is journalist Cameron Dueck’s account of his journey through the, now occasionally opening, Northwest Passage, with Silent Sound and the crew he assembled for the purpose. It is a story of discovery, concern and unremitting interest. Accompanied by a brand new photo section (quite different from the American edition) it comes with a cover designed by Latte Goldstein at River Design in Edinburgh and a cover quote from Alistair McIntosh, author of Hell and High Water and much else. Cameron has made a film of the same name which is currently featuring in environment film festivals throughout the world. We have placed a trailer on its book page on this web site and on Facebook. Cameron Dueck is quite a presence on YouTube and we do suggest that you look him up there. Please do take time to explore this web site. Our Forthcoming page looks as far ahead as March 2014 (and growing). 2013-02-02T11:47:45+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2013/entering_2013_with_contemporary_quality_reading/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2013/entering_2013_with_contemporary_quality_reading/ Contemporary, quality reading for the millions of people whose lives revolve around ideas and feelings expressed through language, narrative, story, information, beautiful and relevant images, is at the centre of our being. At Sandstone Press we embrace ebooks and all new technology from our location in Highland Scotland, and our first publications of the year are in that form and ready for download now. Both are popular titles from our impressive back list, at last available as ebooks. CAIRNGORM JOHN A life in mountain rescue JOHN ALLEN THE LONG BRIDGE Out of the Gulags Urszula Muskus Our list for 2013 is now complete. Please visit our Forthcoming page to learn more. The last few covers will be on view soon. 2013-01-15T08:31:32+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/our_christmas_number_one/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/our_christmas_number_one/ From all of us at Sandstone Press to all of our readers, authors, designers, typesetter, printers, our colleagues at Faber Factory Plus and Faber Factory Powered by Constellation, our friends at Creative Scotland and Publishing Scotland, our fellow publishers in Scotland and beyond, we send best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a busy and prosperous 2013. Sandstone Press is very happy to announce that The Sister by Lynne Alexander is at Number One in Amazon’s Literary Fiction chart. We have had several such Number Ones in the course of a challenging but rewarding year and we thank everyone involved. 2012-12-25T10:50:29+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/media_release_inverness_book_festival_2013_finale_announced/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/media_release_inverness_book_festival_2013_finale_announced/ Media Release FRIDAY 07 DECEMBER Inverness Book Festival 2013 Finale Announced! Eden Court Theatre and Sandstone Press are delighted to announce the participants on the final evening of IBF 2013, Saturday 10th August; Roy Hattersley and Gary Mulgrew. ROY HATTERSLEY entered the House of Commons in 1964 winning Birmingham Sparkbrook for Labour and holding it in the following eight General Elections.  In 1998 he took a seat in the Lords, as the behest of his good friend Donald Dewar, who asked him to help “end ‘em”.  In government he held many offices of state including Senior Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs under Harold Wilson and Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection under James Callaghan.  In opposition he served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer and Shadow Home Secretary.  In 1975 he was elected to the Privy Council and was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party between 1983 and 1982. As a journalist Roy has written columns for The Spectator, The Listener, Punch, The Daily Express, The Daily Mail and for 27 years wrote a weekly for The Guardian, and now writes regularly for The Times.  He is the author of 24 books, including three novels and several biographies including his most recent, David Lloyd George: The Great Outsider (Little Brown, 2010). At Eden Court in 2013, Roy Hattersley will be talking about his new book The Devonshires: The Story of a Family and A Nation (Chatto and Windus, 2013). Roy Hattersley speaks as he writes, with knowledge, insight and most of all, humour. GARY MULGREW was born in Glasgow in 1961. He joined NatWest in 1983 but his banking career came to an abrupt end in June 2002, when he was indicted by the US authorities - along with two colleagues known as the NatWest Three - for allegedly defrauding NatWest. After years of court battles he was eventually extradited to America. Two years of detention in Houston, Texas, were followed by two years in seven different prisons in the United States and England until his full release in 2010.  He now runs a number of successful businesses in the south of England. Hodder and Stoughton published Gary’s account of his extradition and prison experience, Gang of One, in January 2012 and it was published as a paperback in July of the same year. Gary Mulgrew will be interviewed by IAIN MACWHIRTER, the trenchant political columnist with The Herald whose articles are compulsory reading for everyone with an eye on Scotland’s fiery political scene and constitutional debate. ENDS Notes to Editors • The 10th Inverness Book Festival will take place on 07 – 10 August 2013. Since the first Inverness Book Festival in 2004 there have been 192 events and 167 authors have appeared.  Highlights have included Jackie Kay, Ali Smith, Ian Rankin, Iain Banks, Christopher Brookmyre, Mairi Hedderwick, Andy Wightman, Richard Holloway, Michel Faber, Richard Jobson, Jeremy Strong, Joanna Blythman, Louis de Bernieres, Debi Gliori, AL Kennedy, Stuart McBride, James Kelman, Denise Mina, Lari Don, Ian Hamilton, Levi Roots, Andrew Greig, Kevin MacNeil, Grace Maxwell (with Edwyn Collins) and Alistair Urquhart • Eden Court is the largest multi-arts venue in Scotland. It re-opened in November 2007 following an extensive redevelopment programme, which saw the addition of two purpose built cinemas, a brand new flexible second theatre space and two dance and education studios. Website: http://www.eden-court.co.uk • Sandstone Press is a publisher of fiction and non-fiction books and ebooks. Based in Highland Scotland, the company is characterised by high editorial and design standards, internationalism, and a strong engagement with the contemporary world using modern methods. Sandstone Press books have won or been shortlisted for many literary prizes including the Man Booker, Commonwealth, Arthur C Clarke, Creative Scotland, Green Carnation, Saltire Society, and Boardman Tasker Awards. Sandstone Press is represented by Faber Factory Plus and Repforce Ireland, with ebooks distributed by Faber Factory Powered by Constellation. Website: http://www.sandstonepress.com Contact: Teresa Bendoris ( Marketing Manager ) Phone: 01463 239 841 Email: tbendoris@eden-court.co.uk Website: http://www.eden-court.co.uk   2012-12-07T17:20:16+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/backlist_ebooks/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/backlist_ebooks/ As part of Sandstone’s ongoing programme of internet development we will be presenting some of our non-fiction backlist as ebooks. To begin, on 12th December, two of our most popular books, Cairngorm John: A life in mountain rescue, and The Long Bridge: Out of the Gulags, will be posted on all available platforms across the world. Cairngorm John is the autobiography of John Allen, for many years the leader of the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team. The Long Bridge is the posthumous memoir by Polish woman Urszula Muskus of her time travelling through the Gulag Archipelago, eventually to be reunited with her children in England. 2012-12-05T14:40:48+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/how_to_keep_your_doctor_happy_is_amazon_kindles_daily_deal_todaymonday_3rd_/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/12/2012/how_to_keep_your_doctor_happy_is_amazon_kindles_daily_deal_todaymonday_3rd_/ We are delighted to announce another Sandstone Press book as Amazon Kindle’s Daily Deal at only 99p. Don’t miss this opportunity to buy John Larkin’s funny and wise book at such a bargain price. CLICK HERE: http://amzn.to/UBAXkM 2012-12-03T13:01:34+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/our_amazon_kindle_promotions_continue/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/our_amazon_kindle_promotions_continue/ As we pass the half way date in November, and our November sequence of Amazon Kindle Daily Deals comes to an end, let us take this opportunity to remind you that that six other Sandstone Press titles are included in Amazon’s ‘100 at less that £2.99’ promotion for November. Click here to visit the main page:  http://amzn.to/YvYHap Our six titles are:- FICTION The Sea Detective Mark Douglas-Home Click: http://amzn.to/QYVX1Z Dregs Jorn Lier Horst Click: http://amzn.to/RvY3bk The Jaguar T. Jefferson Parker Click: http://amzn.to/SBnfNt NON-FICTION Beyond the Last Dragon James McGonigal Click: http://amzn.to/TY18h1 In the Old Chief’s Country Chris McIvor Click: http://amzn.to/Vijqzw The Red Cockatoo Mitch Miller and Johnny Rodger Click: http://amzn.to/SDsMnD All of these books, as well as the Daily Deals, are doing remarkably well and we will hope that readers everywhere will continue to enjoy them. Four sequels are on the way, for The Sea Detective, The Jaguar, In The Old Chief’s Country, and another which must remain wrapped in mystery for a while longer. The word ‘mystery’ is a clue though! 2012-11-20T09:44:21+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_monday_19th_november_ninepins/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_monday_19th_november_ninepins/ We are very pleased to announce that NINEPINS by Rosy Thornton is Amazon Kindle’s Daily Deal for today, Monday 19th November 2012 at only £0.99. Most recently, Rosy Thornton’s brilliant novel of the Cambridgeshire Fens won the East Anglian Book Award for Fiction. A series of quotes is presented below. LINK to Amazon’s Daily Deal page: http://amzn.to/U6wl3Q Ninepins has been particularly well received by book bloggers. ‘Ninepins explores the idea of family, and the volatile and changing relationships between mothers and daughters, in a landscape that is beautiful but perilous.’ Cornflower ‘Distractingly readable.’ Book Oxygen’s Elsbeth Lindner ‘These are life sized characters with life sized stories that somehow become larger than life. They will stay with you long past the turning of the last page.’ Bookishly Attentive ‘Thornton creates her characters with warmth and a light touch.’ The Book Trunk ‘A really enjoyable book.’ Adele Geras ‘Mature and impressive, an accomplished novel.’ The Elephant in the Writing Room ‘Five stars for this story that brought up all the emotions I have experienced as a single parent,’ Rainy Days and Mondays ‘I thoroughly enjoyed the book and was disappointed when it finished’ Kat @ Best Books To Read ‘Piercing dialogue that drives to the heart.’ Michele Shannon ‘Very fine fiction indeed.’ Bookworm ‘With the tension of a thriller, NINEPINS explores the idea of family, and the volatile and changing relationships between mothers and daughters.’ Always With A Book ‘Ninepins is a thoughtful and realistic drama.’ Bookfan ‘Assured storytelling and a satisfying read.’ The Little Reader Library 2012-11-19T05:46:49+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_sunday_18th_november_site_works/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_sunday_18th_november_site_works/ We are very pleased to announce that SITE WORKS by Robert Davidson is Amazon Kindle’s Daily Deal for today, Sunday 18th November 2012 at only £0.99. This book was tremendously well received when it was first published. A series of quotes is presented below. Amazon’s Daily Deal page featuring Site Works: http://amzn.to/T9nYqi PRAISE FOR SITE WORKS ‘It deals with reality and the poetry is in the reality, as you let it whisper. I hope it will be widely read, by the elite in their sharp suits who make the decisions and by the men in their boiler-suits who toil in the frozen dawn.’ Katherine Stewart, author of A Croft in the Hills, Cattle on a Thousand Hills, and more ‘In this book, Davidson has given voice to a whole class of people who are treated simply as figures on a balance sheet by economists, or peripheral stereotypes by other novelists. Site Works deserves to be read by the very men to whose lives it gives such beautiful attention.’ Alan Bissett, author of Pack Men, Death of a Ladies’ Man, and more ‘I once said to the author that his book was ‘like The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists without the hope of socialism, but actually it’s better than that!’ Ken MacLeod, author of Intrusion, The Restoration Game, and more ‘The pithy humour of the men is utterly believable and runs like a thread through the whole novel, so that it’s never depressing though it can make you feel pity and - now and again – horror.’ Moira Forsyth, author of Tell Me Where You Are, Waiting for Lindsay, and more ‘Davidson has come up with an incredibly vivid depiction of a temporary community of transient workers, which is almost too authentic for comfort.’ Alastair Mabbott in The Herald Impressive.’ Ross-shire Journal ‘This is a real life engineering project and these are the men and their machines who made it happen and Robert Davidson is their brilliant chronicler. In his words the technical and the mundane, the endless body-destroying hard graft, the awfulness of the Highland winter weather, all come together to create something fine.’ Charles Gorer in the Northern Times 2012-11-18T10:17:32+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/rosy_thornton_wins_the_east_anglian_book_award_for_fiction_with_ninepins/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/rosy_thornton_wins_the_east_anglian_book_award_for_fiction_with_ninepins/ We are delighted to announce that Rosy Thornton has won the East Anglian Book Award for Fiction with her novel of the Cambridgeshire Fens, Ninepins. Appreciation of Ninepins and of Rosy Thornton’s subtle evocations of place and character continues to grow. In this case the place is the Cambridgeshire Fens and the characters belong to mother and daughter, and another girl whose needs cannot be ignored. On our Facebook we have a picture of Rosy receiving her award from the hand of poet and novelist Sophie Hannah. 2012-11-16T12:05:03+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/the_impac_dublin_award_and_success_on_the_kindle_daily_deal/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/the_impac_dublin_award_and_success_on_the_kindle_daily_deal/ We are very happy and proud to announce that Incidents in the Life of Markus Paul, by David Adams Richards, has been nominated for the prestigious Impac Award. On their ‘Librarian’s Comments’ the Award organisers have this to say: ‘Incidents in the Life of Markus Paul is powerful and gripping, Richards’ thriller in the Miramichi speaks universal truths about human relationships and foibles.’ For this Award, ‘Books are nominated for the Award by public libraries in cities throughout the world, making the Award truly international and making the longlist unique in its coverage of international fiction.’ We are very proud that our colleagues the librarians agree with us about the quality of this great book. We are also proud that ‘Me and Mr Booker’ by Cory Taylor was yesterday (Monday 12th August 2012) allotted as Amazon Kindle’s Daily Deal. In the course of the day this truly great book soared to #2 on the overall list of paid for kindles. This is a tremendous feat by Cory Taylor, for which we congratulate her. ‘Me and Mr Booker has already won the Commonwealth Book Prize (Pacific Region). 2012-11-13T09:02:24+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_monday_12th_november_me_and_mr_booker/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_daily_deal_monday_12th_november_me_and_mr_booker/ We are very pleased to announce that Cory Taylor’s Commonwealth Book Prize (Pacific Region) winner, Me and Mr Booker is Amazon Kindle’s Daily Deal at £0.99 today. If you don’t already have it, this is a great opportunity, available only today. Please click here: http://amzn.to/ZtlPGU The brilliant and popular novelist,Isla Dewar has this to say about the title: ‘A beautifully paces and endlessly witty book about love and growing up . . . I loved this book.’ Other praise follows. Me and Mr Booker is sharply observed and blackly comic, but it is also a tender depiction of love, sex, power and one girl’s heartbreaking step into adulthood. Australian Bookseller + Publisher Taylor’s take on the oft-explored rite of passage from sweet, open-eyed childhood into the dark sexually charged realms of adolescent turmoil is distinctive, disturbing and refreshed by the limitless aptitude of middle-aged men for acting like spoilt teenagers. A vibrant, questioning and unpredictable read. West Australian 2012-11-12T09:53:54+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_at_2.99_or_less_in_november/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/11/2012/amazon_kindle_at_2.99_or_less_in_november/ We are very happy to announce that six Sandstone Press titles are included in Amazon’s ‘100 at less that £2.99’ promotion for November 2012. Click here to visit the main page:  http://amzn.to/YvYHap Our six titles are:- FICTION The Sea Detective Mark Douglas-Home Click: http://amzn.to/QYVX1Z Dregs Jorn Lier Horst Click: http://amzn.to/RvY3bk The Jaguar T. Jefferson Parker Click: http://amzn.to/SBnfNt NON-FICTION Beyond the Last Dragon James McGonigal Click: http://amzn.to/TY18h1 In the Old Chief’s Country Chris McIvor Click: http://amzn.to/Vijqzw The Red Cockatoo Mitch Miller and Johnny Rodger Click: http://amzn.to/SDsMnD Ebooks become more significant to readers and buyers of books, it seems with every passing month. Sandstone Press entered early into the fray, pre-Kindle, pre-Sony Reader, pre-Kobo and the rest, by commissioning new literature and presenting as a designed PDF sold through Pay Pal. Since then we have built our way into the mainstream, publishing all of our fiction and narrative non-fiction in ebook on the day of hard copy release. Huge changes are occurring in publishing, much energised by the reading public’s speedy acceptance of ebooks at present levels of affordable technology. It can only get better and it is the intention of Sandstone Press to remain at the forefront, with ebooks as with our beautiful hard copy books, and always with readers of contemporary, quality fiction in mind. 2012-11-02T12:44:05+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2012/new_titles_for_october_2012/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/10/2012/new_titles_for_october_2012/ As October arrives and the trees of Highland Scotland prepare to shed their leaves, we are proud to present our final two titles of the year. ‘Anywhere’s Better Than Here’ is the product of the fertile imagination of young Scottish novelist Zoe Venditozzi. Of this first novel and its author Robert J Lennon has this to say: ‘This darkly comic domestic drama comes in like a lamb, grows fangs, then drags you kicking and screaming to the finish. Zoe Venditozzi is sneaky as a thief, but her protagonist is lousy with pathos and charm. Sad, gripping, and true, Anywhere’s Better Than Here is an understated literary champ.’ Also appearing in October is ‘How To Keep Your Doctor Happy’, the latest humorous title from real doctor John Larkin. Learn the things that annoy doctors most and how (usually) to avoid them. Learn helpful medical knowhow - it’s easier to talk with your doctor if you have an idea what he’s rambling on about. Everyone who’s ever had to see a doctor needs this hilarious book. It’s an ideal stocking filler for Christmas too, so do keep it in mind. Meanwhile, our list for 2013 has reached August with all but two covers designed, a new benchmark of ambition and achievement for Sandstone Press and Highland Scotland. Before too long we hope to have the entire year’s titles on Forthcoming. Please do keep visiting. For the Trade: Information Sheets can be downloaded from the foot of each book page. Our Faber Factory Plus (sales) and MDL (distributer) details are on the Contact page. 2012-10-01T07:37:27+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2012/the_testament_of_jessie_lamb_is_short_listed_for_the_portico_prize/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2012/the_testament_of_jessie_lamb_is_short_listed_for_the_portico_prize/ We are delighted to announce that The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers, first published by Sandstone Press in 2011 and now published in a brand new paperback edition in partnership with Canongate Books, has been short listed for the Portico Prize. The Portico Prize aims to celebrate the strong regional identity of the North (of England) and to raise awareness of the diversity of its cultural, literary and historical heritage. It also promotes quality writing of all kinds. The full short list is reproduced below in alphabetical order by author’s name. 1. Joan Bakewell She’s Leaving Home Little Brown Book Group 2. Tom Benn Doll Princess, The Jonathan Cape 3. A S Byatt Ragnarok: the end of the gods Canongate Books 4. Sarah Hall Beautiful Indifference, The Faber and Faber 5. Ed Hogan Hunger Trace, The Simon and Schuster 6. Mark Illis The Last Word Salt Publishing 7. Jackie Kay Reality, Reality Picador 8. Val McDermid Retribution, The Little Brown Book Group 9. Jane Rogers Testament of Jessie Lamb, The Canongate Books/Sandstone Press 10. Joe Stretch Adult, The Johnathan Cape 11. Emma Jane Unsworth Hungry, the stars and Everything Hidden Gem Press 12. Paul Wilson The Visiting Angel Tindal Street Press 13. Robert Williams How the Trouble Started Faber and Faber Jane Rogers’ The Testament of Jessie Lamb has previously been short listed for the Man Booker Prize 2011 and, earlier this year, won the Arthur C Clarke Award. We send congratulations to Jane on this latest success and friendly greetings to our partners in this phase of the book’s life, Canongate Books in Edinburgh. 2012-09-20T13:11:32+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2012/sandstone_press_publication_programme_september_2012_august_2013/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/09/2012/sandstone_press_publication_programme_september_2012_august_2013/ We are pleased to present the powerpoint display which Editorial Director Moira Forsyth spoke to when she addressed the Faber Factory Plus sales team on Friday 14th September 2012. More information on each book can be found on its book page. A selection of photographs from the event can be found on the Sandstone Press Facebook which can be accessed from the left side of the Home Page. For the Trade: Information Sheets can be downloaded from the foot of every book page. 2012-09-17T11:40:23+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/press_release_from_eden_court_theatre_inverness/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/press_release_from_eden_court_theatre_inverness/ Media Release 30/08/12 Inverness Book Festival raises the bar for 2013 The Inverness Book Festival will be raising the bar higher than ever when it celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2013. Eden Court is delighted to announce that their 2013 festival will be organised in association with Sandstone Press, the Highland based publishers, and directed by the company’s managing director, Robert Davidson. The festival will take place between 07 and 10 August 2013 and both Eden Court and Sandstone are delighted to be working together to deliver the most exciting programme to date. Eden Court Theatre Director Colin Marr said:- This is an exciting development for the Inverness Book Festival. I am delighted to be working with successful publisher Sandstone press and to have Robert Davidson as director for the 10th Inverness Book festival. Robert has a tremendous knowledge of the book world and that knowledge is extended through Sandstone’s partnership with Faber Factory Plus. This should allow us to deliver a really impressive line up to celebrate the Book Festival’s 10th anniversary. This also feels like a good moment to publicly record thanks to our previous Directors, Jason Rose and Brid McKibbon for helping us establish the Inverness Book Festival so successfully.  Book lovers not only in Inverness but also in the wider region have much to thank them for. Sandstone Press Managing Director Robert Davidson said:- In 2013 we will be bringing a calibre of author from all around the British Isles that will excite and inspire readers. We will bring readers into direct, personal contact with great authors talking about their books. We’ll also be endeavouring to give the authors a really tremendous festival experience, sending them away with a positive impression of both our reading public and our beautiful location. We are honoured to be associated with Eden Court Theatre in this great project. ENDS For further information, interview requests or to arrange picture opportunities, please contact Eden Court Marketing Department / marketing@eden-court.co.uk / 01463 239 841. For Sandstone Press please contact: Jelica Gavrilovic Jelica@sandstonepress.com Notes to Editors • The 10th Inverness Book Festival will take place on 07 – 10 August 2013. Since the first Inverness Book Festival in 2004 there have been 192 events and 167 authors have appeared.  Highlights have included Jackie Kay, Ali Smith, Ian Rankin, Iain Banks, Christopher Brookmyre, Mairi Hedderwick, Andy Wightman, Richard Holloway, Michel Faber, Richard Jobson, Jeremy Strong, Joanna Blythman, Louis de Bernieres, Debi Gliori, AL Kennedy, Stuart McBride, James Kelman, Denise Mina, Lari Don, Ian Hamilton, Levi Roots, Andrew Greig, Kevin MacNeil, Grace Maxwell (with Edwyn Collins) and Alistair Urquhart • Eden Court is the largest multi-arts venue in Scotland. It re-opened in November 2007 following an extensive redevelopment programme, which saw the addition of two purpose built cinemas, a brand new flexible second theatre space and two dance and education studios. Website: http://www.eden-court.co.uk • Sandstone Press is a publisher of fiction and non-fiction books and ebooks. Based in Highland Scotland, the company is characterised by high editorial and design standards, internationalism, and a strong engagement with the contemporary world using modern methods. Sandstone Press books have won or been shortlisted for many literary prizes including the Man Booker, Commonwealth, Arthur C Clarke, Creative Scotland, Green Carnation, Saltire Society, and Boardman Tasker Awards. Sandstone Press is represented by Faber Factory Plus and Repforce Ireland, with ebooks distributed by Faber Factory Powered by Constellation. Website: http://www.sandstonepress.com 2012-08-30T08:59:17+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/jammy_dodger_leaves_the_warehouse/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/jammy_dodger_leaves_the_warehouse/ We are delighted to say that Kevin Smith’s Jammy Dodger is now leaving the MDL warehouse, the first Sandstone book to be released by our new distributor. There will be launch events in Dublin on Tuesday 4th September and in Belfast on Thursday 6th September. If you are in Ireland do keep your eye open for further information. If you are not in Ireland Kevin’s launch is another good reason to visit; one of many. 2012-08-10T10:00:46+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/change_of_distributor/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/08/2012/change_of_distributor/ Sandstone Press books are now distributed in Britain and Ireland (from 1st August 2012) by Macmillan Distribution. Contact details are as below. Our new arrangements allow for ease of service for our customers, whether independent book shops, wholesalers, or chains, through our selling agents at Faber Factory Plus. Sandstone Press enters this next phase of transition and development with great optimism and enthusiasm. MDL Brunel Road Houndmills Basingstoke Hants RG21 6XS Trade order telephone : 01256 302692 Fax number: 01256 812558 Email: orders@macmillan.co.uk We also take this opportunity to thank our friends at BookSource for nine years of sterling service. 2012-08-02T09:15:02+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/inverness_book_festival/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/inverness_book_festival/ The ninth Inverness Book Festival is now in full swing at Eden Court Theatre. Sandstone Press has set out a stall in the theatre’s wonderful foyer, where many of our books can be purchased. We wish the Festival every success and its many visitors every enjoyment. On first night it certainly looked like authors Maria Anderson and Peter May were packing them in, entertaining and informing. Among the many fine authors appearing in 2012 will be Shona MacLean and Karin Altenberg, Cameron McNeish and Tom Devine, Ron Ferguson and Swedish poet and singer (with Easy), Johan Holmlund. We have put a couple of pictures from the first night foyer on our Facebook page and hope you like them. On Friday night BBC outdoor journalist, Mark Stephen, will give this year’s Neil Gunn Lecture titled ‘Belonging to this place’, an event which Sandstone Press Ltd is proud to sponsor. We do hope you will go along to all of these events (but especially ours) to meet and talk to book people. Time so spent is never wasted. 2012-07-26T08:58:13+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/me_and_mr_booker/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/me_and_mr_booker/ We are highly delighted to announce that Cory Taylor’s Me and Mr Booker, winner of the Commonwealth Book Prize, Pacific Region, is leaving the warehouse for the shops today. This is one of the brightest and best, most entertaining and moving, novels to come out of the highly literate and productive land of Australia in many years. On this link you can hear it discussed on the First Tuesday Book Club: http://bit.ly/ivIoNX It will soon be available in Britain and Ireland in both paperback and ebook through all the usual retailers and platforms. You won’t want to miss reading this one! 2012-07-17T05:32:04+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/two_huge_prizewinners_for_you_in_a_single_month/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/07/2012/two_huge_prizewinners_for_you_in_a_single_month/ It doesn’t happen often so allow us to blow our trumpet and point you in the direction of the two fantastic books we are publishing this month from two wonderfully gifted woman authors. Me and Mr Booker by Australian author Cory Taylor won the Commonwealth Book Prize, Pacific Region, only a month or so ago. As controversial as it is truthful and entertaining this amazing book will be talked about for years to come. Incidentally, we understand that Cory Taylor will be visiting the UK in 2013. We have that to look forward to. With our colleagues at Canongate we are proud to present our joint publication of a brand new edition of The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers. The most talked about book of 2012 was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and, more recently, won the Arthur C Clarke Prize. If you are visiting the site for the first time, or if you arrive after receiving our latest newsletter: Welcome! Please do take time to look around. You can download the PDF of our latest catalogue (a great read in itself) from the Home Page. Sandstone Press books are sold to the Trade by Faber Factory Plus in UK and Repforce Ireland in Ireland. You will find their details on our Contact page. 2012-07-01T09:56:39+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2012/getting_the_news_to_you/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2012/getting_the_news_to_you/ One of the more frustrating aspects of publishing is getting the news about great new books to the people who we know would love them. We can’t rely on reviews, knowing only too well that the reviews editors in all the papers, national and local, struggle to find space. From the outset at Sandstone Press we have embraced the internet. This acceptance grows no less with increasing online sales of our hard and paperbacks and, of course, an increasing uptake of ebooks. The clamour for attention can be deafening and confusing. These days, therefore, we are turning more to Facebook and Twitter while also posting the reviews. We intend to be assiduous in getting our monthly bulletin out to our highly valued news group so, if this is of interest, do drop an email to info@sandstonepress.com and we will include you in (as Groucho used to put it). To book lovers everywhere let me say that Sandstone Press is for you. Readers are at the centre of our attention. The next bulletin will be going out in a few days. Please do sign up for it. Take a look also at our Facebook and follow us on Twitter. We have some big news on the way. 2012-06-25T15:51:39+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2012/contemporary_quality_reading/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/06/2012/contemporary_quality_reading/ If you are visiting for the first time after receiving our latest New Bulletin we bid you welcome. We know some of our recipients pass them on although you might also have read it on our popular Facebook. Please do take the time to explore Sandstone’s web site. As you will see we are publishing a stream of contemporary quality fiction which is being increasingly noticed throughout the world. So far, in 2012, we have released Lynne Alexander’s novel about Alice James, The Sister, Rosy Thornton’s thrilling mother and daughter story Ninepins, Alison Fell’s latest, the element -inth in Greek, and T Jefferson Parker’s Charlie Hood crime novel, The Jaguar. In just three weeks we will be releasing Incidents in the Life of Markus Paul by David Adams Richards, a name which regularly comes up in the Nobel lists. This one also carries a major recognition from Man Booker short-lister Esi Edugyan. These brilliant novels marry with a non-fiction list which is already established as one of the most exciting in Britain, with decidedly outdoor, ecological and literary bents. Again, in just a few weeks we will be releasing Grizzly Bears and Razor Clams, Chris Townsend’s account of the Pacific Northwest Trail in north west America. From this month Sandstone Press books will be distributed in North America by Dufour Editions. Beside our new association with Faber & Faber through selling agents Faber Factory Plus, and our revitalised relationship with Repforce Ireland, we are extremely excited by present developments. There are more on the way so please do keep visiting. Don’t forget though, the centre of our attention is always our readers and bringing them the very best of contemporary quality reading. 2012-06-05T07:49:38+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/me_and_mr_booker_by_cory_taylor_wins_commonwealth_book_prize_pacific_region/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/me_and_mr_booker_by_cory_taylor_wins_commonwealth_book_prize_pacific_region/ Sandstone Press is delighted to announce that Me and Mr Booker by Cory Taylor has won the Commonwealth Book Prize 2012, Pacific Region. Book and author go forward to the overall final at the Hay Festival of Literature and the Arts on June 8th. Sandstone Press Managing Director Robert Davidson says: ‘Cory Taylor’s book is a triumph of empathy and an acute commentary on family and sexual relationships. Told entirely without judgement it lays bare the vulnerability of individuals across not only the sexes but also the generations. The voice of Martha is going to resonate wherever it is heard.’ Author Cory Taylor says: ‘To have this kind of recognition for your work is exciting for any writer, given that writing is so much about confidence in the worth of what you’re trying to do. And to be recognized out of a field of such quality and diversity is especially thrilling. It gives me a special sense of connection to new writers from all over the world. Somehow the imperative to tell stories seems less isolating and more like a communal undertaking.’ Author Isla Dewar has already given this comment: ‘A beautifully paced and endlessly witty book about love and about growing up. Not the inevitable moving into adulthood growing up, but the growing up we all have to do, and keep on doing all our lives. I loved this book.’ Chair of the Commonwealth Book Prize, Margaret Busby says, ‘We were wonderfully spoilt for choice among some strong regional contenders on the shortlist. Here are novels with memorable characters, unpredictable situations, a sense of humour, books that give insights into cultures and histories not our own, crafted by writers who care about language, and its ability to renew and enrich our view of the world.’ Sandstone Press will release both book and ebook to the British and Irish markets on July 19th 2012. The book is published in Australia by Text. TITLE: Me and Mr Booker AUTHOR: Cory Taylor FORMAT: B paperback ISBN: 9781905207985 RRP: £8.99 EBOOK: All platforms ISBNe: 9781905207992 RRPe: £7.99 Sandstone Press is represented in the UK by Faber Factory Plus and in Ireland by Repforce Ireland. 2012-05-22T08:13:55+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/now_leaving_the_warehouse/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/now_leaving_the_warehouse/ We hear from our friends at Faber Factory Plus that the new Sandstone catalogue is proving quite a hit with store managers. How pleased we are! With Latte Goldstein at River Design in Edinburgh we pulled out all the stops to make it not only informative but also beautiful and entertaining. You can download it from our Home Page below the menu. Leaving the warehouse today are Alison Fell’s intriguing the element -inth in Greek soon to receive a resounding thumbs up on Book Oxygen. With it go the new paperback edition of James McGonigal’s Beyond the Last Dragon, recipient of the Saltire Society’s Research Book of the Year prize, and the first copies of The Jaguar by T Jefferson Parker. This is Jeff’s 19th title and we intend to extend his already healthy readership to Britain and Ireland. Crime readers are going to love this book. You can read an interview conducted by Garrick Webster on Crime Fiction Lover and get the idea. Activities for the year’s earlier publications continue with many appreciative online reviews for Rosy Thornton’s Ninepins. The latest is from Adele Geras which we will bring to you just as soon as we can. Chros McIvor’s tour continues on Friday 18th with an event in his home town of Wick where Sandstone MD Robert Davidson will ensconce himself behind the counter to hand sell In the Old Chief’s Country and A Bend in the Nile. A real job at last! Please do keep visiting this web site where we will do all we can to keep you up to date with news and events. 2012-05-14T11:48:00+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/jane_rogers_wins_the_arthur_c_clarke_award_for_science_fiction/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/jane_rogers_wins_the_arthur_c_clarke_award_for_science_fiction/ Jane Rogers has received the prestigious Arthur C. Clarke Award with her novel, The Testament of Jessie Lamb at a ceremony held in London on Wednesday 2nd May 2012. 2012-05-03T08:54:53+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/zoe_strachan_and_ever_fallen_in_love_short_listed_for_scottish_book_of_the_/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/05/2012/zoe_strachan_and_ever_fallen_in_love_short_listed_for_scottish_book_of_the_/ We are absolutely delighted to announce that Zoe Strachan’s Ever Fallen in Love has been short listed for the ‘Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book Awards 2012, in partnership with Creative Scotland’ http://bit.ly/IOvjDf . This is Scotland’s largest literary prize and Zoe’s listing now sits beside Jane Rogers’ for the Arthur C Clarke Award, and Cory Taylor’s for the Commonwealth Book Prize as further testimony to Sandstone’s successful entry into the world of contemporary fiction. Congratulations to all three authors. PS: Trade buyers should get in touch with our sales representatives at Faber Factory Plus and Repforce Ireland. See our Contact and Representation page on this web site. 2012-05-01T13:05:01+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/cory_taylors_me_and_mr_booker_short_listed_for_the_commonwealth_book_prize/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/cory_taylors_me_and_mr_booker_short_listed_for_the_commonwealth_book_prize/ We are delighted to announce that the forthcoming Me and Mr Booker by Cory Taylor, originally published in Australia by Text Publishing and due out from Sandstone Press in July, has been short listed for the Commonwealth Book Award as has just been announced by the Commonwealth Foundation. At Sandstone we have believed in Cory’s book, and the wonderful voice of Martha, since we set eyes on the first few words of Chapter One. Readers in Britain and Ireland are going to be just as gripped by her personality and her life as they are in Australia. 2012-04-27T12:56:00+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/back_from_the_london_book_fair/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/back_from_the_london_book_fair/ The Book Fair Team has returned from London after our busiest visit ever. Greetings go out to agents from Canada, the United States, France and Germany, not to forget our colleagues in London. Greetings also to printers from Scotland, England and Poland whom we met. The Team is now hard at work on likely new titles and new projects for 2013 and what might be our most internationally oriented year yet. Rosy Thornton’s novel of the Cambridgeshire Fens, Ninepins’, has been released with a launch in Heffer’s Bookshop, Cambridge http://bit.ly/fmykcA and the title has already attracted warm appreciations from bookbloggers Cornflower http://bit.ly/I8Ts6d and Book Oxygen http://bit.ly/I2YQdg High tributes are also being given to the novel’s beautiful cover. Rosy has contributed a short article on place in her work to the web site Strictly Writing which you can read here: http://bit.ly/HPeDKY ‘Ninepins’ is also available as an ebook. You can click on from her book page. Hamish Brown departs from his more usual mountain and travel topics with his highly original offering ‘The Oldest Post Office in the World’. Watch out for this one wherever you go and, if you are in or visiting Scotland, don’t let it fail to inspire your imagination and give you lots more interesting places to visit and odd things to see. 2012-04-20T07:47:25+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/sandstone_press_at_the_london_book_fair/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/04/2012/sandstone_press_at_the_london_book_fair/ Managing Director Robert Davidson and Commissioning Editor Moira Forsyth will be at the London Book Fair on Monday and Tuesday of next week. On Monday Sandstone has a table at the Publishing Scotland stall (H350) and on Tuesday will be on walkabout. Both Directors schedules for both days are almost full but space can still be made for agents wishing to place high quality works of fiction and non-fiction for publication in 2013 and 2014. EMAIL: info@sandstonepress.com 2012-04-13T12:32:00+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2012/the_testament_of_jessie_lamb_short-listed_the_arthur_c._clarke_award_more_r/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2012/the_testament_of_jessie_lamb_short-listed_the_arthur_c._clarke_award_more_r/ Sandstone Press is delighted to learn that ‘The Testament of Jessie Lamb’, Jane Rogers’ brilliant and disturbing novel of the near future has been short-listed for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, one of six such titles: http://bit.ly/ceekMf . Managing Director Robert Davidson says:- ‘This latest recognition of Jane Rogers’ The Testament of Jessie Lamb underscores the breadth of the book’s interest and relevance. Jessie’s voice speaks with obvious authenticity and almost unbearable poignancy of the great concerns of our time. The world we bequeath to our children should be at the head of every political and social agenda. That the book’s many qualities have been recognised by both the Arthur C. Clarke and Man Booker judges does not surprise us. Our main wish though, is that it should be widely and appreciatively read. It is more than just a story.’ The Arthur C. Clarke Award is the most prestigious award for science fiction in Britain. The other five titles in the list are: Hull Zero Three (Greg Bear), The End Specialist (Drew Magarry), Embassy Town (China Mieville), Rule 34 (Charles Stross), and The Waters Rising (Sheri S. Tepper). Elsewhere on this site you can find David Kinloch’s review of Beyond the Last Dragon (James McGonigal) for Scottish Literary Review, Karen Meek’s warm review of Dregs (Jorn Lier Horst) for Euro Crime, and Lesley MacDowell’s glowing assessment of The Sister (Lynne Alexander) for the Sunday Herald. There is more to come. Hamish Brown’s The Oldest Post Office in the World and Rosy Thornton’s Ninepins are on their way to the warehouse now. Do take a look at our Forthcoming page for our programme for 2012. We believe you will love these books. 2012-03-26T10:24:41+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2012/faber_factory_plus_2012_conference_presentation/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/03/2012/faber_factory_plus_2012_conference_presentation/ This is how Sandstone’s publishing programme for 2012 to August was presented to Faber Factory Plus at Bloomsbury House in March. Robert Davidson - Faber Factory Plus 2012 2012-03-13T09:20:20+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/the_sea_detective_hits_the_shelves/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/the_sea_detective_hits_the_shelves/ We are pleased to announce that the paperback edition of The Sea Detective by Mark Douglas-Home has left the warehouse and that the title is now officially published. You can buy your copy in most branches of Waterstones and online. It comes as both hard copy and ebook, the ebook being both epub at Waterstones and elsewhere, and as a Kindle from Amazon. Mark Douglas-Home and his oceanographer-detective Cal McGill are going places and we hope you will go with them. 2012-02-29T12:59:13+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/2012_catalogue_in_preparation/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/2012_catalogue_in_preparation/ This year’s catalogue will be our most ambitious to date, reflecting the publishing house’s rapid advance over the last year and our new association with the world’s most prestigious independent publisher through its new selling arm, Faber Factory Plus. The new catalogue will be on the Home Page (where the present catalogue is now) in two or three weeks and going out in numbers shortly afterwards. Please keep visiting this web site. Incidentally, if you take a look through our book pages you should see some improvements in the making. These include videos viewed directly on the page, rather than a click through to our YouTube channel, and reference to the books’ Amazon reviews. All this is designed to enhance your enjoyment in visiting this space and, most importantly, from the books themselves. Sandstone Press is looking for a temporary replacement for our Marketing and Publicity Person, Eilidh Smith, who is presently on maternity leave, and an advert will appear shortly on Northings, the Hi-Arts web site. Applications should be sent by email to info@sandstonepress.com for the attention of Robert Davidson, Managing Director. 2012-02-18T13:24:01+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/the_presses_are_rolling_the_festivals_coming_to_call/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/02/2012/the_presses_are_rolling_the_festivals_coming_to_call/ With barely time to write these days, we nonetheless know we have to stay in touch with our regular visitors. Let’s see . . . The Sea Detective paperback is increasing its pre-orders more or less by the day and is now far and away, comfortably, our record holder in this respect. Our Norwegian crime writer, Jorn Lier Horst, and Dregs is also going really well although mostly in internet sales. Come on, all you retailers! This one will fly off your shelves. ‘The Sister’ by Lynne Alexander (cover design by Rebecca Pickard at Zebedee) and Chris McIvor’s second volume of African memoirs, ‘In the Old Chief’s Country’ (cover by Latte Goldstein of River Design), are printing now and we look forward to great reviews and increasing interest. Take a look at the latest cover designs. On my day of writing, we received Guilherme Condeixa’s artwork for ‘The Jaguar’ by T Jefferson Parker. This provides this already distinguished and successful author with a brand new look. You can find it on his book page now. Latte Goldstein has also produced fabulous covers for Rosy Thornton’s Ninepins and Alison Fell’s ‘the element -inth in Greek’. We have the first proofs from Latte for ‘Hartsend’ by Janice Brown. Best known as a childrens’ author Janice has produced a skelping good book for adults. Its cover will match this quality. Keep visiting, it won’t be long before it is on view. Gravemaker + Scott in Paris are working on Hamish Brown’s ‘Climbing the Corbetts’ and this will be a match for his earlier books with us (and Martin Moran’s) except for the forthcoming ‘The Oldest Post Office in the World’ which has been designed by Heather MacPherson at Raspberryhmac. In addition to all this we will have at least two authors at this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival, Jane Rogers and Zoe Strachan, and also have a strong presence at the Inverness and Nairn Book Festivals. More to follow on all this. Meantime, signing off breathlessly. 2012-02-02T15:05:58+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2012/a_great_rolling_up_of_the_sleeves/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2012/a_great_rolling_up_of_the_sleeves/ Work has well and truly started for 2012 here at Sandstone Press. Soon we will be going to print not only with the highly subscribed paperback of Mark Douglas-Home’s The Sea Detective but also with Chris McIvor’s In the Old Chief’s Country and Lynne Alexander’s The Sister. For the present though, our designers, typesetters and editors are all hard at work. Print estimators are sharpening their pencils. Please do keep visiting this web site for news of further developments. 2012-01-12T12:37:40+00:00 http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2012/happy_new_year_to_all_our_visitors/ http://www.sandstonepress.com/news/01/2012/happy_new_year_to_all_our_visitors/ Sandstone Press wishes all of our web site visitors across the world, authors, designers, print colleagues, colleagues at Creative Scotland and Publishing Scotland, our new colleagues at Faber and Faber, publishing partners at the Gaelic Books Council and The Drouth, our distributors at BookSource and, most of all, our readers, all the very best for the New Year. 2011 took the publishing company to a new level with competition successes for Jane Rogers, James McGonigal and Zoe Strachan. With Faber Factory Plus taking our books into shops and head offices across Great Britain, Repforce doing the same in Ireland, and Faber Factory Powered by Constellation handling our ebook accounts, in 2012 we anticipate a wider outreach than ever before. There will be a more formal announcement soon from Faber and Faber about our new representation, followed by another from ourselves. Big changes have been in preparation for some months but our aim remains what it always was: to take the best of contemporary, quality reading to the widest possible readership from our base in Highland Scotland. Please continue the journey with us. 2012-01-02T12:29:17+00:00